Return to Virgin River (Virgin River #19)(31)

“It would be pretty convenient and not terribly troublesome, having an affair with someone you’re married to...”

“No, no, no,” he said, shaking his head. “We don’t sleep together; there is no affair. The first thing I noticed was that she wasn’t that interested and I suspected she might have...you know...”

“Other relationships?” she asked.

“I guess. So at some point after she’d been living in LA for a couple of years and came to San Francisco for a weekend, I told her I was starting to feel like a booty call and we were over. I told her I was going home to Virgin River and promised her she would hate it, but she was welcome to visit me here. It was a very smooth transition. She told me she loved me but we’re probably better as friends.”

“Sounds so grown-up,” she said.

“It is. I follow her career. I used to follow with resentment and then with curiosity and eventually I hoped her wish would come true. It stopped being about me a long time ago. Frankly, I think she’s a good actress. I’ve seen her in a lot of things and it’s not unusual for me to think she should’ve been the lead. The star. But I’m not in a relationship with her anymore. I haven’t been for a very long time. I think you were shocked and startled. I’m sorry about that.”

“Why?” she asked. “Why does how I feel or what I think matter?”

“We’re becoming good friends,” he said. “I look forward to sitting on the porch after a long day. I like it when we have dinner. I’ve had several tenants in this house—a few days, a few months. I’ve never had what I’d call a close friendship with any of them before. It’s a bad start to a nice friendship when you get caught lying.”

“But you weren’t lying.” She took a pull on her beer and made a face. “You just didn’t explain properly. Or thoroughly.”

“You lied about the beer,” he said, grinning. “You don’t drink that beer.”

“It’s awful. I bought it in case you came over. Want the rest of this?”

“You didn’t spit in it, did you?” he asked with a laugh, reaching for it.

She made a face and handed it to him. She went to the kitchen to pour herself a glass of wine. The bottle was open, after all. She went back to the couch and curled up in the corner. “I just don’t want to be a complication. This thing you have to work out is with your wife. I’m just a tenant.”

“It’s not a complication and it’s not about you, except for one thing,” he said. “I want to sit on the porch, have dinner, enjoy life. I don’t have any expectations beyond that right now. But I think we have potential. I think we like each other enough to have potential.”

“No expectations,” she said. “Me, either.” It was a total lie. She’d been having expectations like mad in the form of Caroline and Landon. They were morphing into a nearly perfect couple. The story was growing lush and sexy. She realized she wanted to become lush and sexy with Landry.

“I did have a thought on my drive home. We’re ill suited, me and Laura. Opposites. We thought we had a lot in common, given that we’re both artists of a sort. But I live a quiet life; I like being alone. I don’t like crowds or busy places but Laura craves people. We want different things—she’d like the adoration of millions while I’d rather go unnoticed. I’m not really shy, I don’t think. I just prefer smaller groups or maybe just one person at a time. While she wants restaurants and parties, I’d rather train the dogs or go for a walk. I married a woman like my mother. I believe it’s true. I was a toddler when my mother left Virgin River to go back to the city. She divorced my father. He was too quiet and solitary for her. She died a few years later. A car accident. Virgin River isn’t for everyone.”

“I find it much more to my tastes than I thought I would,” she said. “Your dog went on my walk with me today.”

By his expression, he was shocked. “Was he polite?”

“Very. And I wasn’t afraid. I had a moment, you know... But Otis waited for me to invite him. Of course he followed me, but then he waited.”

“What a good guy,” Landry said. “He has no ulterior motives, he just wants to be a good friend. That’s what I love about dogs. They bond and nothing can break the bond. He’s always good, but I think he likes you.”

“You shouldn’t bother with the locks on the doors,” she said. “Apparently he comes and goes as he pleases.”

“I know,” he said. “It worries me sometimes. I don’t want him to wander too far or get himself in trouble, like if he runs into some challenging wildlife. Or some hunter mistakes him for a deer.”

“A black, brown and white deer? That would be a very stupid hunter.”

“How about dinner tomorrow night? We can share the prep.”

“It’s getting pretty chilly when the sun goes down,” she said. “How do you feel about your house and a fire in the fireplace?”

“I feel good about that.”





* * *



Kaylee went to Jack’s at lunchtime, planning on a sandwich and salad, but she had a double treat when she found Mel there with an adorable little girl. They were sitting at a table rather than the bar and Mel waved her over.