Forbidden Falls (Virgin River #9)(99)

He pulled her close. “I’ve had it with you, all right. And not enough of it, either.”

“Oh, Noah,” she whispered. “I think you’re insatiable.”

“I want to spend the night with you, but I don’t have to. If you’d rather be alone….”

She smiled at him and snuggled into his embrace. “I love it when you stay, but I think you’d better go. I feel like I’m playing with fire every time I let you talk me into bed. I don’t want to become too dependent on you. And I don’t want the whole town to know we’re sleeping together. I have children to think about.”

“Are you cutting me off?” he asked nervously.

She smiled at him. “Did you just whine?” She chuckled at him. “Noah, much as I love cuddling up to you, I don’t want your new town, your future congregation, to think the worst of you.”

“I’m not worried about that. I think I’d get a standing ovation for finding you. But, to ease your mind and your reputation, I’ll be very discreet,” he said.

“That’s about half the problem…There are also children to think about…”

“We’ll be very cautious there, sweetheart. They’re your top priority, which makes them mine also.”

Then he pulled out his secret weapon. He kissed her. Hard and deep. He pulled her against him and it took her less than fifteen seconds to melt into him and fully enjoy his arousal. When he released her lips, she said, “You are a very bad boy and no one with an ounce of sanity would take you for a minister.”

“Could I be taken for a man who wants the woman he loves?”

“Yeah, you qualify,” she said. She melted to him again. And he stayed. Again.

Brie Valenzuela listened very patiently while Noah laid out what he’d learned about Arnold Gunterson, Ellie with him while he did so. Brie asked for the pages he held. When he was finished, she asked, “Have you heard from Dr. Gunterson in Maine?”

“I talked to him early this morning. He took a year’s sabbatical to research and finish his dissertation right about the time Arnie was settling into his new school, so if anyone from the school board tried to check his credentials, they would only learn that he was a graduate working on his Ph.D. Dr. Gunterson can’t imagine who would do something like this to him.”

“I’ll call Dr. Gunterson,” Brie said. “Now, listen. No more amateur sleuthing. Stay away from Arnie and his school, keep the kids away from him. If you see him around here, call me at once. I’ll take it from here. I’ve already filed a motion for a temporary restraining order. I’m going to talk to the district attorney about this, but more importantly, I’m going to ask Mike to speak to the sheriff about a possible fraud and identity theft.

“Here’s what I want from you, Ellie. Vanessa is out of town with the little ones right now, but she’ll be back next week. I want you to pay a call on her and ask her a favor. Ask her to dress you for court. Borrow something from her, something conservative and appealing, and be ready. Vanni will know exactly what to do—she’s the best. And you two are almost the same size.

“Beyond that, stay alert and cautious. And hear me when I say this—no more investigating. If you make one little slip, he might find out what you’re doing and it could spoil everything.”

“Spoil what?” Ellie asked.

“There are very few reasons for identity theft, Ellie. One is to profit from the victim’s bank accounts. The other is to hide who you really are because who you really are is not lawful. Since Dr. Gunterson never suspected his identity was borrowed, I assume there was no theft. I bet our Arnie has priors. He’s done something wrong somewhere and needs to be someone else. And if he’s hiding, he’s probably hiding from the police. And if he’s hiding from the police, there are probably warrants. And if there are warrants, I believe it would serve our purpose to let him be arrested.” Brie lifted an eyebrow. “Hmm?”

“Wow,” Ellie said. “I should have known. If he’s nothing but a criminal, shouldn’t I have known?”

Brie shook her head. “I can’t answer that one for you, Ellie. I spent years in the district attorney’s office in Sacramento, prosecuting crimes like this. I met a lot of very intelligent women who were victimized by manipulative men, as well as perfectly sharp men taken for a wild ride by clever, dishonest women. It’s a con, and you were at a vulnerable time in your life. Cons can smell that a mile away. Sadly, it’s common in the world of criminal law.”

“Can we get beyond this?” Ellie asked. “I can’t even think about my kids dealing with this in the years to come!”

“I think, if we get law enforcement help in handling this, we have a good shot at resolving the situation. If you see him or hear from him, call me at once. I’ll give you the house number.” She leaned over her desk and scribbled on the back of a business card. “I wrote down Mike’s pager number, as well. Your next call is 911. Got that?”

“Got it.” Ellie took the card.

“Now,” Brie said, relaxing visibly. “Don’t you have a church to finish, and a wedding to organize for Shelby and Luke? All sorts of really important things to get done?”

“We do,” Ellie said with a smile.