Hidden Summit (Virgin River #17)(42)

“How’d you do that?” Paul asked.

“Paul, it’s what I do. Kitchens and bathrooms.”

“Yeah, but you do it like a contractor, not a finisher.”

“The boss relied on me a lot. This is the kind of stuff I looked into all the time. Good hardware and contractors’ prices.”

“Thanks,” Paul said, staring at a sheet of paper with lots of prices, order numbers and internet addresses. “Next time I’m not going to waste so much time. I’ll just call you.”

“Absolutely,” Conner said. “I’d be happy to help.”

Paul looked at him a bit oddly. “Sometimes I think there’s more to you than meets the eye.”

Conner laughed. “You have no idea. Do you have the specs for the next kitchen job? Dan and I will get started tomorrow if the owners are ready.”

“Right here,” Paul said, handing over some rolled-up architectural plans. “You’ll tear out the existing kitchen in the next two to three days, get your flooring, raw cabinetry, granite cut to size, hardware and fixtures delivered over the next ten days. Make it happen.”

“Big job,” Conner said, looking through the plans.

“Good bid, too. We want to be on time. If you need help, let me know and I’ll send over extra crew. I want these folks happy. They have a lot of friends.”

“You bet.”

“And, Conner, I wanted to talk to you about something else.”

Conner lifted his eyebrows.

“Leslie,” Paul said. “She’s not here right now. She’s gone to Eureka for supplies for the office. But I wanted to talk to you about her.”

Conner thought for a minute and then said, “Shoot.”

Paul took a breath. Whatever it was, it wasn’t easy for him. “I like you. Brie vouches for you. Dan says you’re a good worker and conscientious. Dan trusts you and he’s a hard sell. I don’t have any reason to doubt you or suspect you, so it’s not about that. But Les has been almost a part of the family for ten years and she’s been through a lot lately. I don’t want her to go through a lot more.”

Conner gave a short nod. Word traveled fast; no surprise there. “Perfectly understandable. But you should talk to her, not me. Tell her what worries you, because I’m not looking to complicate anyone’s life.”

One corner of Paul’s mouth curved. “She seems happy.”

Conner almost smiled. “How about me? Do I seem happy?”

Paul laughed. “I couldn’t read you if my life depended on it.”

“Let me ask you something. Don’t read anything into this, but when you were dating your wife, did a lot of people question you? Have a lot of opinions about your motives and behavior? Your intentions? Before you were even sure yourself?”

That brought a really big laugh out of Paul. “Yeah,” he said. “Everybody and their brother. And have you met my father-in-law?” He shook his head with another laugh. He stood and stuck out a hand. “Good luck, buddy.”

Conner took the hand. “Thanks. I think.”

“Don’t mess her up.”

“She doesn’t seem like the kind of woman who’s real fragile or neurotic. In fact, I think she’s the most normal woman I’ve dated. Ever.”

“I just hope you’re the most normal guy she’s ever dated,” Paul told him. “Because I met the last one, and she’s due a normal guy.”

April disappeared with a shower, and May arrived in the mountains with enough glowing sun to set the roadsides and hills on fire with color as the wildflowers took over. Conner borrowed Luke Riordan’s Harley and took Leslie on a ride through the hills one Sunday afternoon. They rode through the mountains out to the ocean cliffs, through the redwoods and down through vineyards.

They stopped for a while on a hilltop to enjoy a breathtaking view, but the view only occupied them for a little while, and soon they were reclined on the grass, making out like teenagers.

“You’re tempting,” he told her. “I could get you na**d right here, but there’d be a risk.”

“Oh?”

“Well, there’s a road for one thing. We could get into each other, like we do, and not hear an approaching car or truck until it’s too late. Or, we could get fire ants in our underwear and really pay.”

“Let’s stop at the grocery, get a couple of filets, two potatoes, some mushrooms and asparagus and go home. You can grill the steak and asparagus and I’ll be in charge of the potatoes and mushrooms.”

“Deal,” he said, standing and helping her up.

Later, when they were enjoying an after-dinner libation—her Merlot and his beer—she said, “I hope this doesn’t scare you, but I can’t remember ever feeling this calm.”

“Why would that scare me?”

“I know you aren’t really into the idea of any kind of permanence. But I feel so much better than I can ever remember feeling.”

The idea of permanence sounded great. It just wasn’t a luxury he could afford at the moment. A lot had to be worked out first. “Why do you suppose that is?”

“I don’t know. Maybe because I’m not dancing as fast as I can. Conner, I seriously didn’t realize how hard I had to work at my relationship with Greg. I was used to people saying marriage was hard work and I bought it. I don’t think I understood what they meant—I think what I didn’t get was that both people were supposed to be working at it, not just one of us.”