Whispering Rock (Virgin River #3)(56)

He liked to be there in the late afternoon when the sun was shining. He could almost see Brie leaning against that big boulder, eyes drifting closed, smiling her secret smile. He stayed a little later than usual one day, through the setting of the sun. He’d just been thinking how nuts it was to do that without a flashlight when he heard a car engine. He assumed it would be young lovers, for this was not a place to be in the dark—there were no lights and it was far off the main road. Before he could be seen, he started up the river, back toward his vehicle. Something made him stop; the car had pulled into the clearing, the lights remained on, but he didn’t hear the sound of a car door. He stood and just listened for a moment. Young lovers would kill the lights. What other business was there at this isolated bend in the river, after dark?

He waited; the engine continued to run, the lights shone. Mike walked the short distance back to that spot, looked through the trees and saw the form of a single man inside the truck. Waiting. Now his curiosity was stirred and he watched.

It was probably ten minutes before a second vehicle pulled up to the clearing, another truck. The engines of both vehicles remained on, headlights illuminating the clearing, but when the second vehicle arrived, one man emerged from each truck.

Then it got interesting. From the first truck stepped Detective Delaney and from the second, a man Mike recognized as a well-known illegal grower. He was a big guy, just over six feet, and wore his signature Shady Brady hat. Over the past year Mike, Jack and Preacher had all had a little unexpected traffic with him. The first time was before Mike got to Virgin River—the man took Mel out to an illegal grow to deliver a baby. Most recently, the man showed them where to find Paige when her abusive ex-husband abducted her; it was very probable the guy had saved her life. He was an enigma—clearly a criminal, but apparently with a humanitarian side.

The men faced each other; Delaney leaned on the hood of his truck, and the grower kept his hands in his pockets. They didn’t shake hands or greet each other as friends, and no money or goods changed hands—it was not a drug buy. In less than five minutes they got back into their respective trucks and left the area.

There were a number of possibilities, but the most likely was that Delaney had himself an informant inside the cannabis trade.

Nine

Paul Haggerty would help Jack anytime he could—that went without saying. It being a profitable venture for him as well made it even more palatable. But when he got right down to it, the deal maker was the fact that Vanessa was now residing in Virgin River.

He found six men who were ready to sign on immediately, so he had a contract drawn up for Jack and faxed it to the bar. Next he leased a large mobile home and had it delivered to the homesite, along with a portable toilet and commercial Dumpster for the grounds. His crew could drive down and sleep in the trailer during the week, going home weekends if they so chose. He’d haul his own small trailer for himself. He’d change out and add crews as progress was made on the house. Jack would have to double as a foreman because Paul couldn’t stay in Virgin River all the time. He was leaving his dad and two brothers to run their construction company while he took on this project and he’d have to spend some time back in Grants Pass trying to pull his own weight.

While the structure was being completed, Paul would scout around the area for painters, carpet layers, tilers, paperhangers, cabinetmakers. Jack would have no trouble having light and plumbing fixtures and appliances installed, once Mel chose them. The house had been started last spring and great progress had been made, but alone, it would take Jack another year. Together, with crews, they might be able to finish it in a few months. If the weather didn’t hamper them too much, by early spring at least.

And during that time he would see Vanessa. The idea threatened to give him hives. He loved being around her, went nuts with her effervescence and buoyancy. The problem was that he found her just as sexy and distracting pregnant as he had that very first night Matt put the moves on her. He wondered if he was just setting himself up for a lot of long, troubling nights of thinking about her and feeling sorry for himself because he would never, under pain of death, touch his friend’s woman. He felt guilty that he even wanted to.

But this would be his secret, that he desired her, worshipped her. And while Matt was at war, Paul would look in on her from time to time, be sure she was holding up.

He and Matt were like brothers. They had gone to the same Oregon high school, had a couple of years of college together, joined up and went into the Corps together. But Matt was the one who was confident with the girls, while Paul had always been the reluctant one, a little shy. It was hard for him to make that first move; he’d always had to think it through for a long time before he could work up to approaching a woman. He’d overcome a lot of that by now, but not enough. He’d never have the speed, finesse and confidence of his best friend.

He remembered that night just a few years ago as if it was yesterday. Matt was on leave and they met in San Francisco to do the town. They were out drinking when they spotted a group of flight attendants on layover at one of the bars. Paul had said, “Oh, my God, would you look at that! Would you look at her!”

“Which one?” Matt asked.

“The leggy one with the red hair and gold skin. I’m going to pass out.”

“I’ll go get her for you.”

“No! God, don’t do that. Wait till I figure out something….”