Whispering Rock (Virgin River #3)(48)

He hated for it to ever end and when it did, she whispered, “Would you like to come inside?”

“No.” He smiled. “You’re not really ready for me to come inside.”

“You make me wonder what I’m ready for.” She kissed him again. Deeply and passionately.

“When you no longer wonder, we’ll talk,” he whispered against her lips.

“You could take advantage of my weakness,” she said.

He put her back on her feet and put a soft kiss on her forehead. “There will be no taking, mi amor. Only giving.”

“Oh, my. I can see why women would marry you so easily.”

He touched her nose. “Brie, it was never like this.”

“I don’t believe you,” she said.

“I wouldn’t believe me either, but it’s true.”

He pulled her to him and she leaned into him, resting her head on his chest, her arms around his waist. He held her like that, both of them quiet for a long time, just enjoying the closeness. He stroked her back and dropped soft kisses onto her damp hair, feeling more alive than he had in such a long, long time. It filled him with pride that she didn’t tense or tremble while he held her. She had slowly become accustomed to his touch, his embrace, and knew that she was safe and loved in his arms. Even if nothing more ever came, he felt he had already won the prize.

“You know the boys are coming to hunt?” he asked her.

“Yes. Jack’s getting ready for them. Will you hunt?”

“Of course. Which means I won’t be around town much during the day. If you need me for some reason, you’ll have to let me know beforehand.”

“I’m helping Mel with a big project she has going on. Something about free mammograms for the women around here.”

“Then I’ll see you later?”

“Yes. Later.”

He gave her a peck on the lips and pushed her gently away, taking his hat out of her hand, then got back into the SUV and drove away. He watched in his rearview mirror and saw that she stayed outside in the clearing in front of the cabin until he was out of sight.

When Mel went into the bar for her morning coffee, David contented in the stroller after his breakfast, she found Paige sitting at one of the tables with the newspaper spread out in front of her. “How’s it going?” Mel asked, parking David by the table while she went for a mug and some coffee.

“Good,” Paige said. “Hi, coochie,” she said to the baby, making him smile. She automatically took a toast crust from her nearly empty plate and gave it to him to teethe on. He was delighted by it.

Mel brought her coffee to Paige’s table and sat with her. She noticed David gnawing on the toast and smiled. “Isn’t that good?” she said to the baby. “Where is everyone?” she asked Paige.

“Hmm. I think Jack has gone to Eureka for supplies. I offered to do that—the boys are going to be here pretty soon. He said he’d get it, then next thing I knew he wasn’t around. John’s in the back, setting up lunch, with Christopher underfoot as usual.”

“How about Mike?” she asked.

Paige shrugged.

Preacher came out of the kitchen with a tray of glasses. He put them under the bar roughly. “Hey, Preach,” Mel said. “Where’s Jack?”

“Eureka.”

“How about Mike?”

“It’s not my day to watch him,” he said gruffly, going back to the kitchen.

“Jeez,” Mel said. She looked at Paige and met twinkling eyes. “Something funny?”

“John appears to be a little tense. Amazing he got through so many years without sex every day.”

“Every day?” Mel asked. “Well, holy shit, his count must be down to nothing!” She looked over her shoulder to make sure they were alone. “How’s he handling the drought?”

“He’s a little testy,” Paige said, amused. “I keep telling him this is entirely up to him. If it’s too much, we can make a few adjustments. But he wants to do it right.”

“Hope he doesn’t explode,” Mel said absently.

“He asked if we can close the bar on ovulation day.”

Mel’s eyes widened in surprise and they both melted into laughter.

Jack hadn’t seen Rick in a couple of days. He hadn’t been back from Eureka for long when Rick showed up. A couple of hunters were having a late breakfast at one of the tables, so Rick jumped up on the bar stool and Jack fixed him up with a cup of coffee. “Welcome back,” Jack said.

“The party was great, Jack. Thanks again for everything you did.”

“I didn’t do anything. This town has a habit of turning out for important people.”

“I’ve been checking on Liz,” he said. “She’s doing great. You can’t believe how good she looks. Beautiful, in fact.” He laughed. “I didn’t think she could get more beautiful.”

“That checking business seems to work out for you pretty well,” Jack said, lifting his cup. “Your complexion looks a little clearer.”

Rick laughed and ducked his head a little. “Here’s how it is, Jack. Me and Liz—it’s not cut-and-dried. I’m going to finish my hitch, alone. We’re not going to make any promises to each other until that time’s up.” He shrugged. “We’re gonna let Liz get a little older, finish school, see where we are. I want her to have a chance, you know. If this isn’t right for her—hooking up with me—then I want her to have the space and time to move on. In the meantime, for right now, we’re still a little too locked in to each other. You can understand that, can’t you? After everything… Well,” he said, lifting his mug and taking a sip, “we have a pretty strong bond. I’ll be there for her as long as she needs me—it’s the least I can do. I’m not going to tell her she can’t feel it, that she has to try to get over it.”