Whispering Rock (Virgin River #3)(30)

“Oh, brother,” she said, looking a bit stricken.

“How much do you want a baby?” Mel asked. “In fact, you might not hit pay dirt that first month. You might have to keep that kind of schedule for two or three months. Just because you’re both fertile doesn’t mean you get pregnant on one try.”

“Oh, boy,” she said. “I can just imagine how happy John’s going to be to hear this. I’ll have to remind him it was his idea to get your input.”

“If you like, we can do a sperm count before you put him through all this—but if it’s low, the prescription is going to be wait it out, see if it gets better. On the other hand, if it’s really high after all that sex, he’s good to go. No reason to cut him off. Are you a betting woman?”

“I have a feeling how this is going to turn out,” Paige said. “He’ll want to do what matters, but…”

Mel laughed in spite of herself. “Yeah, he’s been so happy for just months now. I guess I can expect those frowns and scowls back. My advice—try this for three months and then begin the infertility routine—starting with sperm count. Sure you want to do this?” she asked, taking the baby off the breast and putting him over her shoulder for a burp.

“I want a baby, yes,” she said. “But John was the first one to say he wanted children with me.”

“You can always wait until next year,” Mel said. “Spend the rest of this year seeing if you can get tired of it.”

“I’ll talk to John,” she said, noncommittal.

A few days later Mel ate a late lunch at the bar as Jack stood behind it. He filled her water glass. “I want to ask you something,” he said. “I have absolutely no idea how you’re going to answer this.”

“Sounds scary,” she said, taking a spoonful of Preacher’s delicious chicken soup into her mouth.

“Depends on your perspective. Ricky’s USMC graduation from basic is just around the corner and I want to go. I want us to go.”

She shrugged and said, “Of course, Jack.”

“I want us to go alone,” he said.

She swallowed. “Alone?”

He nodded. “I think it’s important, Mel. We have to carve a little time out for the two of us, just you and me.”

“Are you feeling neglected?” she asked.

“Not at all. In fact, I feel pretty spoiled. But I still think we should make a habit of taking some time now and then, when we can be away from the town, the baby, the bar, the patients, everything. Regularly.”

She gave him a seductive half smile and lifted one brow. “Why, Jack…”

“It’s not even about that,” he said. “Well, it can be about that.” He grinned. Both hands braced on the bar, he leaned toward her. “You’re my wife, my lover and best friend. I want you all to myself once in a while.”

“What am I going to do about nursing David?”

“You’ll manage. You pump for extra bottles anyway, and he’s certainly not dependent on the breast anymore—he has bottles regularly. There are lots of people who’d be more than happy to keep him a couple of nights, but I thought about calling Brie. She’s still not working and loves an excuse to come up here. Plus, I haven’t seen her in so long. I’d like to see her again—just to see how she’s doing. Looking. You know.” He leaned forward and kissed her forehead. “Come away with me, Mel. Just a couple of nights.”

“I would love that. I’ll call Brie this afternoon.”

Mel left the baby napping at Doc’s and drove out to her homesite. She parked and got out of the Hummer. Leaning against the hood, she watched Jack driving nails into Sheet-rock inside the frame of their house. Momentarily he stopped and came to where she stood. He opened his arms to her and she filled them. Thank God, she thought. My man is mine again. Those silent, distant days seemed to be behind them.

“What are you doing out here?” he asked her.

“I wanted to tell you something,” she said. “Brie is coming. She’s thrilled to come and babysit. She’ll stay at least a week, probably two. In fact, she said there was nothing in Sacramento to demand her quick return.”

She looked up at him and could see the struggle in his eyes. He wanted Brie—he wanted her near if she felt that it was good for her. He wanted to take care of her in any way he could, but he also wanted a private life with his wife. A private life reclaimed not all that long ago. And there was absolutely no privacy in that little cabin; every sound was shared by all.

“This is good, that she’s coming,” Mel said. “I think she needs to get out of Sacramento for a while—it’ll do her good. And when we get this house finished, I think we should try to buy the cabin from Hope. It’ll be a good place to have when we’re bursting at our seams. You have a very large family.”

He smiled at her. “Well, Mrs. Sheridan, you’re certainly throwing money around today, aren’t you?”

She shrugged. “We have plenty of money. We should think about hiring subs, get this house moving. If you get bored, we’ll find you something else to build.”

“I wanted to do it for you,” he said. “I wanted to show you how much I would do, how far I would go. How hard I would work.”