“God,” he said. “God. Les…”

She eventually collapsed beneath him, panting. He buried his face in her neck and tried to even his breathing, but it was as if he’d run a sprint.

She played with the hair at his temples while she floated back to earth; he liked that part. When he could finally lift his head, he looked into her hot, dark eyes and said, “Do you have any idea how much I love you?”

She smiled at him and said, “I think I do. About as much as I love you.”

He smoothed back her hair. “We’re going to be all right, Les. We’ll just get through the next few weeks and then we’ll get on with our lives. New lives for both of us.”

“Here?” she asked.

He gave a little shrug. “This is as good a place as any. And if the time comes, we can take care of your parents.” He grinned. “The fun couple.”

She was momentarily stunned into silence. “You’d do that for me?” she asked in a whisper.

“I’d do anything for you.”

Conner spent the weekend. He went back to his cabin for a change of clothes, but had all day Sunday with her. They went to a movie and brought home Thai food Sunday night, watched the sky turn lavender again and went to bed together. Early.

When Conner lay beside Leslie, he found it difficult to sleep. She felt so good against him, and he didn’t want to miss a second of it. Everything in his life had changed in the past couple of months. Everything he wanted for his life had changed.

Witnessing a brutal crime was a helluva way to have an epiphany, but that’s probably where the changes began. When it had first happened, his resentment for his circumstance had been so enormous it had almost been suffocating. When his store had burned down, when the threat had come, hatred had risen up in him, and he’d felt like killing someone himself. When the D.A. had decided the most reasonable and safe thing to do was separate him from his sister and nephews for at least a few months, it had felt like a small death.

Slowly his perspective began to change. It was so slight at first he’d barely noticed, and he certainly hadn’t understood what was happening to him. He understood now. He’d been a slave to his business; there hadn’t been room for much else. It hadn’t been unusual for him to put in sixteen-hour days. When he had spent time with Katie and the boys, he’d often done so during a work break. He’d leave work to go to their preschool program or T-ball game or birthday party and then go back to the store to clean up, to lock up. He would have dinner with them and then go back to the store. He had rarely taken days off; he’d even built the boys’ race car beds at the store in the stockroom and then delivered them in one of his trucks. It had been all about filling up the days and making things work.

When he’d lost the store, the shock almost broke him. He’d had nowhere to go, nothing to do. When Katie and the boys had moved away to their own hiding place, he hadn’t been sure he’d ever sleep at night again. “Just a few months,” he’d told her. “Just to be safe, and then we’ll get it all back the way it was.”

Now he realized he didn’t want it the way it had been. He wanted to be able to give quality time to the people he loved. He wanted to teach the boys to fish, to camp, if he could even remember how himself. And while he’d always told himself he’d be okay with the idea of not living within a couple of blocks of them, he hadn’t really accepted it. Not really. Now he knew that would be okay. He also knew that he’d make even more time for them under such circumstances. He would visit; he would bring them to him.

He wasn’t going to work himself to death anymore, either. Hard work was good, all work was destructive. He wasn’t sure what he was going to do when this current mess was behind him, but there were lots of options. He could be happy working on bathrooms and kitchens for a long time to come. He could buy or build a hardware store in the area, though it wouldn’t be the same kind. He could order parts, fixtures and accessories for Paul, but there was no market around here for a store full of high-end, custom items. But for other hardware from lumber to nails—that might actually work.

He dozed off amid thoughts of a life in which work was balanced with fun and relaxation. The sun was coming up as he opened his eyes again, still in possession of the woman who had helped change his perspective, whether she knew it or not. He pulled her tighter against him, spooning her, and kissed her neck and shoulder.

“It’s very early,” he whispered. “I should sneak out of here and head for my cabin, then to work.”

“Hmm,” she hummed. Complaint was clear in her murmur.

“You know I’d like to stay in bed forever. And you know we can’t.”

“I know,” she said.

And then the phone rang. She turned in his arms and gave him a startled look. Who would call her house so early in the morning? She reached over him and grabbed the cordless on the bedside table. She muttered a sleepy hello.

“Sorry to call so early, Leslie. This is Brie. Is there any chance Conner is there?”

“Right here,” she said, passing the phone to him. “It’s Brie.”

“Brie?” he said into the phone. “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing wrong, Conner. Max called just a few minutes ago and got us all out of bed. They’re going to want you in Sacramento soon to prep you before the trial. You should be there in a week at the outside. Get there by next Monday morning.”

He sat up and rubbed a hand over his goatee. “How long is that going to take?”

“A couple of days to prep, tops. You’ll be put up in a hotel and you will have protection, so don’t worry about that. I don’t know when they’ll put you on the stand—whenever it’s most strategic, I imagine. What I’m saying is, I don’t know how long you’ll be stuck in Sacramento. But you should be there in a week at the outside. Which gives you a little less than a week to see your sister and get to Sacramento.”

“I should go directly from my sister’s to Sacramento?” he asked.

“That’s the best idea, I think. Then you won’t raise any eyebrows in Virgin River. And another piece of information you’ve probably been wondering about—your biker is safe. All good. He works in a Harley dealership and there are a lot of group rides out of that shop. He’s clean as a whistle.”

“Not a hit man, huh?”

“Doesn’t appear to be, no. Now, can I suggest you pack and tell your boss you have a family emergency back in Colorado?”

“And what am I going to say it is?”

“Just tell him you’re not real comfortable talking about it right now as you don’t have all the details, but you’ll stay in touch and be back as soon as possible. If it seems safe and appropriate, I could have a word with Paul.”

“Please, if you can,” he said. “I want the job, if I can still have it after the trial. And do this for me, Brie. Check on Leslie.”

“Certainly. Tell her if she needs anything at all, call me.”

“I already have.”

“Then say your goodbyes and get going. It’ll soon be over, Conner.”

Of course Conner had known that he’d be headed to Katie’s home soon, but not quite this soon. He’d already purchased a ticket for a departure a week from now, but he’d wisely chosen a refundable one that, for a fee, could be changed to a different flight, just in the event something like this came up.

Thank God it was only five in the morning. That gave him a little time.

He put the phone back on the bedside table and rolled over, pressing Leslie down into the bed. “In a couple of hours I’m going to drive to the job site to tell Dan I have to leave town. Then I’m going to drive out to the office to tell Paul. Then I’m going back to the cabin to check flights and pack up. I’ll call you when I get to Katie’s.”

“And now?”

“Now, I want to love you one more time before I go.”

“Please, don’t act like it could be the last time. I don’t want to be afraid.”

His eyes bored into hers. “It’s not, Les. It’s not—don’t even think that way. It’s just an inconvenient piece of business that has to be handled. That’s all it is.”

She ran her fingers through the short hair at his temples. “Serious business,” she whispered.

“Don’t worry,” he said. “Just kiss me.” And with that, he devoured her with one of his possessive kisses.

An hour and a half later, his hair still damp from his shower, he was standing at her front door, with Leslie pressed tightly against him. “I’ll talk to you later. Tonight, if I don’t have any problems getting flights changed and make it to the East Coast. But if you don’t hear from me tonight, don’t worry—I’ll call first thing in the morning.”

“I hope you find out your sister is in a good place,” she said.

“I’m sure you’re perfectly safe, Les, but don’t take anything for granted. Lock your doors and pay attention to what’s going on around you.” He put a kiss on her nose. “I love you.”

“I love you more,” she said, letting him go very reluctantly. “Come back to me soon.”

There were things Conner had not thought to ask Brie, like when, if ever, they could share the truth of this situation with close, trusted friends. When Conner told Dan there was an emergency back home in Colorado, true to his character, Dan said, “Oh, man! Is there anything I can do to help?”

“I just have to get home right away. Sorry to leave you without any help here.”

“Don’t worry about that, buddy. I’ll snag some crew off another project and pull ’em over here. Won’t be as talented as you, but family comes first.”

“Sorry for the inconvenience.”

“Don’t say another word. You have my home number, right? Because if things get hairy or you need help, call me first. I’ll do whatever I can.”

He’d only known Dan since early March and it was now late May, yet this was as close as he’d felt to a friend in a long, long time. One more reason not to be owned by a business that left no time for quality friendship. He wished he could say how much it meant to him. He settled for, “Thanks.”

“It’s what friends do,” he said. “Travel safe. Don’t get in a hurry and wreck or something. Just let someone know you’re okay.”

“I’ll let Les know when I get there. I’ll probably call her tonight if I can.”

Then there was Paul. “Oh, jeez, Conner, that’s too bad. You okay for cash? Need an advance or loan or anything?”

He was speechless for a moment. He hadn’t even said why he had to leave without notice, yet his boss was offering him money. What was to prevent him from taking advantage of that offer, accepting a tidy little wad and never coming back? “No, I’m good. Sorry to take off like this, but—”

“Hey, if you were going fishing I’d dock your pay, but you gotta take care of your people. If you run into a problem, call me. I can always find some way to help out. If you get on the road and decide you were a little hasty and you do need some cash, I can wire you money. Don’t stand on ceremony.”

“That’s terrific of you. I have enough money, but thanks.”

“I hope you get things worked out.”

“I’ll do that as fast as I can.”

“I’m not worried about how long it takes you—I’ll hold your job for you. Just make sure you don’t come back here too hastily. Settle things. Family business can get complicated—I know that.”

Now this was a nosy town, Conner knew that, yet neither one of them had asked him what was wrong or what was going on. They might be curious but they showed a respectful restraint when it came to personal family business. He hadn’t offered extra information, and they hadn’t pried.