Promise Canyon (Virgin River #13)(90)

"So--we have our junk," he said to her. "I think one way to handle it--after we make love, when we're soft and vulnerable--we should talk. Hold each other and talk about things that bother us, worry us. I promise to be honest. I promise to be patient." He kissed her lips lightly, tenderly. Then he lifted her chin again so he could look into those haunting blue eyes. "Can you, Lilly? Can you try with me? Because I love you so much."

When she glanced away from him she saw that the Jensen Stables had come into view. She looked back. "I'm not sure," she said. "I'm still afraid."

"Of pain? Of unhappiness? Of finding your love not returned? Of being left all alone? What?"

Her mouth curved in a slight, painful smile. "Yes," she said.

He slowly closed in on her lips and covered them in a passionate kiss. Her arms found their way around him, pulling him close, her mouth moving under his. When their kiss broke, he smiled into her eyes.

"Well, my little sweetheart, be warned. I'm not giving up. I'm not letting you go. I love you, you love me and there's no way we can give up. Not now. In fact, I think we've been put through the hard times to get to this place--to find the good ones."

"I think you're probably just a fool," she told him. But she licked the taste of him off her lips and he laughed.

He nudged Streak into a nice, steady trot back to the clinic, holding her tight against him to keep her safe and warm.

Eighteen

Aiden Riordan had visited his brother, Colin, as promised, to assess his situation with the pain meds. To his enormous relief, everything seemed to be pretty manageable at the time. Oh, Colin was still quite uncomfortable and irritable, but as Aiden clearly witnessed he was doing fine with nonnarcotic pain meds, anti-inflammatory medication and lots of ice packs. His pals from his unit were available and helping him out; it all appeared to be under control. After a couple of days, Aiden left his brother in the care of his physical therapists.

A lot had happened in the three weeks since then-- Virgin River and the surrounding area had been through an earthquake with damage. Luckily, no severe injuries, just a few bumps and cuts. As for Aiden, he'd been concentrating on getting himself a doctoring job in Chico, California, where he'd be making his home with his fiancee, Erin. He'd had quite a few interviews with that purpose in mind. Honestly? Although he talked to Colin at least three times a week, he'd forgotten there was anything to worry about besides the length of his recovery.

But then a call came from the Columbus, Georgia police department. Colin Riordan had given Aiden's name as his contact. According to the police, Colin had been caught in a DEA sting on a local physician who wrote willy-nilly prescriptions for narcotic drugs. Or, maybe not so willy-nilly; Dr. Feelgood was a known dealer of prescription drugs and the DEA had been staking him out for a long time with the complete cooperation and assistance of the local police. The arrest went down just as Colin was leaving the doctor's office with a prescription for OxyContin in his grip.

Apparently Colin was no longer able to get his drugs from the Army doctor and had taken his habit downtown. The Army wasn't going to like that.

Word traveled fast in the Riordan family; the brothers were thicker than thieves. On this occasion, however, Aiden decided to act independently. He even talked it over with Erin. "He's in trouble, he's in pain, he's not healed yet. Nothing about this is going to go well. He needs help. I'm going alone," he told Erin. "I'm going to find him the best possible help--physical therapy along with rehab. And if he's not completely cooperative, I'm turning the family loose on him."

"Wow," she said. "Remind me to never mess with the Riordan boys."

"You know what? I bet he was onto me the last visit. He knew Patrick called us all and complained about the pain meds. He toughed it out for a few days and the second I was gone, he cut loose. Well, there's no getting out of this one."

"Sounds like you could be gone awhile," she said.

"Long enough to be sure he's committed. There's a really good place in Arizona, close enough for me to check on him."

"You planning to keep this from your brothers?" she asked.

"Oh, hell, no! Once Colin is pretty much locked up and in a program I'll call everyone, even my mother and George. But a family reunion right now? Colin might not go for that--in fact, it might not be the best thing for him. I don't want to push him too far. I want him off the drugs."

"I don't really feel like I know Colin," Erin said. "Your other brothers have been so easy to know, but Colin...well, he's fun like the others, but holds back in a way. He's the different one."

"He's not much fun right now, that's for sure," Aiden said. But he'd been caught by the police and there was no way out. He was naked. Exposed. Fortunately for Colin, the judge had a son serving in Afghanistan. He released Colin to Aiden for treatment and suspended his sentence.

Aiden managed to get to Columbus quickly and without anyone else in the family knowing. He transported Colin to Tucson, but it wasn't easy. Aiden had the assistance of a little Valium to grease the skids; he wished he'd taken Patrick's panicked phone call several weeks ago more seriously. He wished he'd managed to see the real Colin during his own previous two-day visit. The guy was strung out on one of the most addictive prescription pain meds on the market. He'd been doubling up; his Army doc had given him something for sleep, completely unaware of the narcotic pain med. And Colin was still in pain--lots of things hurt.