Free Somewhere Only We Know by Barbara Freethy

remember, he didn't know what he wanted to do next.
    Actually, that wasn't true. He knew what he wanted to do. He wanted to take Maddie's hand, breach the gap between them, taste her sweet lips.
    He also knew that he shouldn't do that, because one taste wasn't going to be enough.
    Maddie gave him an odd look, as if she could read his mind.
    He started to lean in, thinking he'd spent all of his life doing what he should do. Maybe it was time for a change.
    Unfortunately, Derek took that moment to bring his horse over and ask them if they wanted a picture.
    Maddie, of course, said yes, and extended her hand. He took it, happy to have at least one part of his fantasy come true. As her fingers curled around his, the rest of the ice around his heart melted away.

Chapter Six
    It was after one o'clock when they got back to the barn. Maddie was a little sad that the ride was over. She gave her horse's nose a loving pat as she got off. The horse whinnied and nudged her hand, asking for more.
    "I think you made a friend," Burke said, walking over to join her.
    She smiled as Derek led her horse back to its stall. "She was a good ride. She liked to run. Your horse did, too."
    "She needed a little more urging than yours."
    "Maybe she was taking her cue from you."
    "Possibly," he conceded. "So, I'm starving. What about you?"
    "I could definitely eat. I saw a café down the road on our way in."
    "Let's check it out," he said, falling into step with her as they walked out to his car. "Thanks for sharing your gift certificate with me. It was an experience I will not forget."
    "I'm glad you had a good time. I wasn't sure you would."
    "I wasn't sure, either, but it was better than I expected."
    She laughed. "It's nice when things go that way instead of the other way."
    "Very true."
    The café was a mile down the highway and had a beautiful deck overlooking the ocean. After ordering at the counter, they took their drinks to an outside table and sat down. It was past the lunch hour, so they had the deck to themselves.
    "It's difficult to believe it's January," she said. "It's seventy degrees and not a cloud in the sky."
    "It's California."
    "I have missed this state." Out of all the places in the world she'd traveled, there was nothing that made her feel as happy as this part of the California coastline.
    "Maybe you should have come back sooner."
    "I definitely could have skipped the Vegas part of my travels."
    "Where else have you been in the last decade?" he asked.
    She winced at the question. "The word decade makes me feel really old."
    "You're two years younger than me," he said dryly. "So let's not talk about who's feeling old. I know you went to San Diego State and you were in Paris on your twenty-first birthday. Then where did you go?"
    "After I finished my study abroad and graduated from college, I decided to stay in Europe and travel with two other girls. We lived in hostels, met some great people, took the train everywhere we could think of. It was quite an adventure. After six months, one of the girls went home, and then it was just the two of us. We decided to leave Europe and go down under. We went to Australia and New Zealand and managed to snag a work visa there for a year." She paused in her story as the waiter set down their food. She'd opted for a turkey club while Burke had ordered a tri-tip sandwich.
    "What did you do for a job?" Burke asked a moment later.
    She swallowed the first bite of her sandwich. "This is good. How's yours?"
    "Perfect."
    "I waited tables in a café," she said, answering his earlier question. "I tried to get into the kitchen whenever one of the cooks was sick or late, which wasn't as often as I liked. The girl I was traveling with fell in love and went back to the states to get married, so it was time for me to move on, too. I decided to go back to Europe and really learn how to cook. I spent some time in France at a cooking school there. Then I went to Italy and spent two years traveling and cooking my