On A Night Like This (Callaways #1)

stairs. I didn't want to leave him, but I couldn't move him."
    Lynda put a reassuring hand on her arm. "You did the right thing."
    "I think he broke his leg."
    "Your father is a strong man. He'll come through this.
    She'd always thought he was strong, but when she'd seen him on the floor, he'd looked surprisingly fragile and suddenly very human.
    "How did the fire start?" Lynda asked.
    "He was cooking. I distracted him when I showed up. We were upstairs arguing, and we didn't smell the smoke right away. What is taking them so long?"
    "They'll want to be careful moving him," Lynda said, putting her arm around Sara's shoulders.
    It had been a long time since Sara had felt such a motherly touch, and the emotion of it brought tears to her eyes. She'd been a strong, independent woman for a long time, but right now she felt like an uncertain girl, who was really, really happy not to be alone.
    They stood in quiet for a few moments, watching firefighters attack the fire from both inside and outside of the house. She saw two men up on the roof, using axes to make some sort of a vent. Their work was efficient and apparently done without any sense of fear. She'd been inside that heat, and she couldn't imagine volunteering to go back in.
    "How do they do it?" she muttered. "How do you do it, Lynda? The fire was so terrifying, so out of control, and it was only in the kitchen. How do you not worry every time your husband or sons leave the house?"
    Lynda smiled. "I've had a lot of practice. I trust in my husband, my children, their fellow firefighters and their training. That gets me through." She paused, her smile fading away, her gaze turning back toward the house. "I can't believe Aiden is here. He's been impossible to reach the last few weeks. I wasn't sure when or if we'd see him again."
    "Really? Why?"
    "He's had some trouble in his life."
    "Isn't that usually the case with Aiden?"
    "This time is different."
    Before Lynda could explain, Aiden came out on the porch, carrying her father over his shoulders. They crossed the lawn and then with the help of another firefighter, her dad was placed on the gurney and attended to by the waiting paramedics.
    Sara moved as close as she could get, relieved to see that her father was awake and able to answer questions, but it was clear he was in a lot of pain. Once they had him stabilized on the stretcher, he was loaded into an ambulance.
    "I'll meet you at the hospital," she told him.
    "No, I need you to stay here, Sara. Keep an eye on my house."
    "I'll take care of everything," she promised. "Then I'll come to see you."
    The ambulance doors closed. A moment later, he was on his way to the hospital.
    "Do you need a ride?" Lynda asked her.
    "Uh, no," she said, trying to pull herself together. Everything was happening so fast her head was spinning. "I have a car. I'll wait until the fire is out, and then I'll go."
    "You've grown up into a beautiful, capable woman, Sara," Lynda said with an approving gleam in her eyes. "Your mom would be proud."
    "I hope so. I still miss her."
    "So do I. And so does your father."
    "That's not easy to believe."
    Lynda gave her a knowing look. "Your father is a difficult, complicated man. I've lived next door to him for twenty years, and I don't feel like I know him any better now than when he first moved in. Since your mom died, he's become even more reclusive."
    She nodded, her attention distracted by Aiden's approach. Now that they were outside, she could see him more clearly. As his gaze met hers, she felt a familiar rush of adrenaline. He'd always had the ability to unsettle her, to make her feel off balance, dizzy, her heart beating too fast, her words getting choked in her throat. It was silly to feel that way now. Her teenage crush had ended long ago. She certainly didn't intend to go back there.
    Unfortunately, Aiden was still a very good-looking man, even with ash in his brown hair, sweat on his brow, a three-day growth of beard on his face and tired blue eyes. Add in the faded jeans with a rip at the knee and a t-shirt that clung to his broad chest and strong shoulders, and Aiden was still as hot and sexy as ever, maybe more so.
    Sara drew in a breath, trying to dampen down her physical response. She could handle it now. She didn't need to get all worked up about a man who had only once seen her as more than his sister's best friend and the girl next door, and that one time had ended in regret on his part.
    Fortunately, Lynda broke the awkward