Temptation Ridge (Virgin River #6)(105)

“Thanks, Mel. Hey, I’m sorry…”

She smiled. “Can I assume you two don’t have a…relationship?”

He returned the smile, but his was hurt. Melancholic. “Don’t assume anything right now. Except—we’ve got a…situation.” And then he was gone.



The knock on the Haggertys’ front door came not ten minutes after Abby returned from her visit with the midwife. She ignored it and kept folding her things to put into a suitcase. She had come home to find the house deserted. The doorbell rang, then there was more knocking, but Abby didn’t respond.

Rather than being worried about another confrontation with Cameron, the thing that occupied her most was what excuse she’d give Vanni for leaving so abruptly. She wasn’t prepared to say, “The man who knocked me up lives here!” Next, she worried—where would she go now? Nikki and Joe in Grants Pass was out of the question—too close to the scene of the crime. Cameron knew Nikki was Abby’s friend. Maybe some anonymous little town down the coast where she didn’t know anyone.

The knocking had stopped. Seconds later she heard, “You don’t have to run.”

She jumped in surprise and whirled around, her face ashen. “How did you get in?”

“The key under the flowerpot,” he said. “Same place I always kept mine. Pretty unimaginative. And pretty rare, this door locking in Virgin River. Abby, it’s too late for you to run.”

She lifted her chin, but her eyes were moist. She put a protective hand over her tummy.

He stepped into the bedroom doorway. “What are you so afraid of, Abby? You think I’d do something to hurt you? You know better than that. If I meant to hurt you, I had a perfect opportunity in Oregon.”

“Cameron, look, this is real complicated, and I can’t let it get more complicated. Please.”

He shrugged and put his hands in his pockets. He leaned against the door frame. “Catch me up a little—tell me why you’d be so damn afraid of me making your life more complicated. And stop packing, for God’s sake. I’m not the enemy.”

She crumbled to the bed and, putting her face in her hands, began to weep. Cautiously, not making any fast moves, Cameron sat next to her and put an arm around her shoulders. “I’m not going to say or do anything to make you nervous or afraid,” he murmured. “If you don’t want anyone to know about us, about that night, I’ll never breathe a word,” he said softly.

“I never meant that night to happen,” she said, lifting her head to turn teary eyes to him. “I wasn’t waiting for you in front of the elevators. I was going to my room. I wasn’t about to spend the night with a stranger.”

“How did that night happen? How does a good friend of Vanessa’s end up in my town?”

“We were all there—it was our best friend Nikki’s wedding. Joe is Paul’s best friend. Even Jack and Mel were at the wedding.”

“Are you kidding me? And I didn’t see a single familiar face.”

“I wish you had,” she sniffed. “It would have saved us both a world of trouble.”

“I didn’t force you. It wasn’t a bad night for you. Not bad at all. And you already know—for me, it was wonderful.”

“It was a huge misunderstanding,” she said. “I’ve just been through a horrific divorce, complete with tabloid pictures.”

“I know. I read all about it. I was looking for you. I wanted another chance with you,” he said.

She turned toward him, desperately grabbed the front of his jacket in both hands and said, “If you know who I am, where I am and that I’m pregnant, and if you tell anyone those details, it could be very, very bad for me. You have no idea how bad.”

Cameron wanted to know everything, but there was no mistaking panic. If he backed her into a corner, even slightly, she could get away from him again. “I think you’re okay here, Abby. I don’t think anyone in Virgin River will make the connection.”

“But you did,” she said, letting go of his jacket.

“Yeah. But I was looking for you. And not for a bad reason.”

“I don’t even know you!”

“Well, that’s arguable. But we’ll go with your perception for now—you don’t know me well enough to give you peace of mind, but I’m pretty easy to check out. Probably lots easier than you were. So—you’re hiding? From him or from me?”

“I didn’t even think I had to hide from you. I had no idea you were here. Really, this can’t get out. Please don’t ask me why.”

“A sticky prenup, I gather…”

“Oh God! Who told you about that?”

“I read it in People magazine.”

“Oh my God! How many people do you think know about that?”

“I don’t know, but no one here will realize you’re that woman. I recognized your face on the cover and read the story because I was hungry for details. Not that I got any—just the bare facts, which struck me as disgraceful. He left you after a few weeks, moved in with another woman and filed for divorce. There was mention that a prenuptial agreement might be a reason the divorce was delayed, but I have no idea how that plays into your drama. All I know is that the shit bag married you and left you. And I consider him scum of the earth for doing that. Not to mention a fool.”