Second Chance Pass (Virgin River #5)(109)

“Maybe he wanted to apologize. It’s not necessary,” she said.

Paul hmmed. “No, I don’t think so. I suggested he might get some points with Vanni if he said he was sorry. He said he couldn’t do that—he wasn’t sorry. Just disappointed by how it turned out.”

“I thought it was best,” she said. “After all, it was brief…”

“Yeah. God forbid something like that should ever happen again…”

“Paul, I gave a man five years and he was lying to me the whole time. He kept saying he needed more time before making a commitment and then finally admitted he’d never get married, never have a family. It was like I didn’t know him at all.”

“I know, Nikki. That was bad, I’m sorry. My friend Joe? He’s not that kind of guy. A lie would turn into acid in his mouth. If he wasn’t going the distance, he’d say so.”

“It’s better this way. Better to let it go now, before… I wouldn’t want to go through something like that again.”

“I guess you know what you’re doing. Joe, he’s still a little roughed up, but he’ll get over it. You probably know better than anyone how that feels, right? Trying to get over someone?” He lifted his eyebrows toward his wife.

“Yes,” Nikki said.

“There you go. He said we all have to move past it, get it behind us. That’s what you want, right? For him to forget about you?”

“Yes,” she said, her voice weak and quivering a little.

“God, I hope you’re right about this, Nikki,” he said. “That this is a man to put behind you. I did that once, you know. Different circumstances—I was up against Matt. But I fell in love with Vanni so fast it was ridiculous. No one would believe it—that I took one look at her and man, it just hit me. When Matt made his move, I backed right off. I let her go, I wasn’t going to compete with my best friend for a woman. I have to tell you—I started to regret that ten minutes later. For years all I could think was why the hell didn’t I walk right up to them and say, ‘Out of my way, buddy—I saw her first!’”

Silence answered him.

“But I guess we don’t have much in common there, huh? There was no competition, except maybe Joe was competing with a rotten memory. If there was anything about him you thought was worth a damn, you never would have let him get away. So. I just hope you’re right….”

She whimpered a little bit. “It was one night….”

“I think maybe the crazy fool loves you,” Paul said.

“That’s impossible,” she said, but there were tears in her voice.

“Nikki,” Paul said softly. “You said yes, right?”

“Of course I said yes,” she sniffed. “He didn’t force me. He didn’t even insist. He’s not that kind of guy.”

“Yeah, that’s what I’m saying. You know, it’s probably none of my business, but it just doesn’t make sense to me—two people trying to get over each other because something good happened, something both of you wanted to happen. But I guess you know what you want. And don’t want. Huh?”

“I don’t want to get hurt again.”

“I hear ya, Nikki. I understand, I do. You’ll be strong enough to take a chance again someday. When you are, I’m sure you’ll stumble on a good man. There are probably a million of ’em out there. Just wanted to be sure nothing bad happened.”

It took her a minute to respond. “Nothing bad happened.”

“That’s good enough for me. You take care, Nikki.”

He hung up the phone and looked at his wife. He smiled.

“That was very sneaky,” Vanessa said.





Seventeen




The dry heat of July brought passionately anticipated action to the Middleton family—labor pains. Preacher was back and forth from the kitchen to his quarters no less than every ten minutes. “How is it now?” he asked Paige.

Paige was reading to Christopher. “John, it’s going to be a very long day for you if you can’t relax a little. I’m still having contractions ten minutes apart.”

“But it’s going to be today, right?”

“This could go on for twenty-four hours,” she said. “They’re not real hard.” Then she turned to Chris. “Why don’t you read this page, honey. You can do it.”

“’Kay,” he said, and proceeded to read, but whether from identifying the words or from memory, it was hard to tell.

Preacher went back to the kitchen, his head hanging. “Still ten minutes,” he told Jack.

“I have an idea, buddy. Let’s get some food ready for dinner tonight and tomorrow night, just in case you don’t feel like cooking. I’ll hold down the fort.”

“Should we call Mel again?” he asked.

“No,” Jack said. “We should let her catch a nap, in case she has to be up all night with you.”

“Okay,” he said.

Jack chuckled under his breath. His own experience with his firstborn had definitely lacked this edge of anticipation, it having come upon him so fast. Maybe the nice slow buildup wasn’t so great after all. Preacher was going to be a wreck by the time this baby finally made an appearance.