Wild Man Creek (Virgin River #14)(62)

He made a sad face himself. “If you don’t mind me asking, where will you go?”

“Oh, I have options. In fact, I can have my old job back anytime I want it. I’m just not convinced I want it.” She laughed. “Harry, my boss, told me to take a break and relax. I’m not sure I’m done relaxing just yet. That whole corporate thing—it just doesn’t appeal like it used to.”

“I suppose not,” Jack said. “I came up here after twenty in the Marines and all I brought were my rifles, fishing gear, clothes and camping equipment. And I never left. I was raised in Sacramento, no small town. But I’m just not a city boy, after all.”

“Do you have to make an appointment with that couple right away?” Jill asked.

“I can’t wait too long, Jillian,” he said. “If this was my house, I’d do as I please. But it’s not really my house. I have to do the right thing.”

“Would it kill you to give me a day or two to think about what I might do next? Where I might go? Because there’s a lot to do if I move—not the least of which is decide where.”

“Wouldn’t even make me flinch,” he said. “It’s the least I can do. You’ve taken real good care of the place for me and I appreciate it. Just call me soon as you can, will you?”

“Of course,” she said. “I totally understand. I just haven’t thought about my next home or job yet. I need to do that, don’t I?”

“I guess so,” he said. He shook his head. “Denny would work this little property forever, I think.”

She had to laugh. It was huge! Ten acres, a couple of greenhouses and an enormous garden. A house with over four thousand square feet. She glanced up to the roof, feeling a little sentimental. She’d never again have another widow’s walk.

She gave his arm a pat. “I’ll call you tomorrow, Jack. Thanks for the heads-up.”

Eleven

Jillian had gone back to her outdoor garden after Jack left. Kneeling, weeding, aerating roots, pulling a few root vegetables to check their progress, all she could do was think about the fact that this experience, her time in this house and on this land, was no longer indefinite. Even if this Bay Area couple didn’t make the right offer on the property, someone else would. She wasn’t the only person in the world who would find the fertile beauty of the land and the incredible refurbished space in that big old house irresistible.

She thought the most logical thing for her to do would be to return to San Jose in the fall and work for BSS again; it was work she understood, after all. Regardless of all Harry’s noise about how she should take on the world, start her own company now, move on to a stronger position, the only thing that felt right was the familiar. If she had to go back to corporate life, she’d go back to a company she understood.

She couldn’t be on vacation forever.

She wondered briefly if she should bite the bullet and start her next career as the owner of a B and B. That would justify staying here. With these thoughts in mind Jill worked away for a couple hours until she heard a familiar vehicle in the drive.

Colin had brought some groceries back to the house and volunteered to make their dinner. She took him up on the offer—she didn’t feel much like cooking. In fact, she rarely felt like cooking, or cleaning, or shopping for groceries. She was the kind of woman who did those things because they had to be done, not because they were fulfilling. She was the last person who should ever be the owner of a bed-and-breakfast.

She puttered in the upstairs bath for longer than usual. By the time she heard Colin’s feet on the stairs, coming for her, she was standing in front of the mirror in the bedroom that held all her clothes. She wore pale yellow capris that tied below the knees, a white tank covered by a loose-weave sweater that fell off one shoulder, and three-inch heels.

He walked into the room and came up behind her, his hands going to her hips, a smile on his lips as he met her eyes in the mirror. “Interesting look,” he muttered, kissing her neck.

She turned one ankle to get a side view of the shiny black pump. “I used to wear heels to work every day. Suits, dresses with jackets, skirts and sweater sets, even dress slacks, but I always wore heels. I liked being as tall as the men. I liked looking them in the eye.”

“You liked intimidating them,” he accused.

She turned in his arms. “I was a lot more girlie, that’s for sure. Probably more enticing to the male eye than jeans or shorts, tank tops and Skechers.”

“That might be, Jilly, but there’s almost nothing you can do to make yourself sexier to me.” He slid his hands around to her butt. “You’re the sexiest gardener I’ve ever messed around with.”

“You’re not more turned on by the capris with three-inch heels?”

“You even turn me on in those flannel pj’s pants.” He grinned. “Those babies slip off real easy….”

“Jack has someone interested in the house. My party is almost over. I’m going to have to decide where I’m going, what I’m doing.”

“Haven’t you been thinking about it?” he asked. “Hasn’t your deal with Jack always been till September?”

She nodded. “I fantasized that nothing would change and he wouldn’t have a better deal than me renting here for a long time, maybe another year. Instead of thinking about where I’d go and what I’d do, I was thinking about trying out a winter crop inside shelters with smudge pots and grow lights. But… Well, it was a respite, a vacation, sort of. A break from the real world. I can’t be on vacation forever.”