Jack’s sisters brought some of Mel’s closest friends with them—Ralph Lauren, Lilly Pulitzer, Michael Kors and Coach. Each one of them had a strong sense of style, but what was more obvious than their collective taste in fashion was their warmth and humor. They all met Mel with delight, eschewing the offered handshake and immediately embracing her. It was a very physical, affectionate family. Every time Mel stole a look at Jack he had his arms around a sister or niece, frequently dropping kisses on their heads or cheeks. Just as frequently he would seek out Mel and put a possessive arm about her shoulders or waist. And to her surprise, so would Sam, as though they’d been close for years.

All Brie had wanted for her birthday was to have the family together and her brother home. “He’s not so very far away,” Mel said. “Don’t you get to see him often?”

“Not nearly often enough,” Brie said. “Jack has been essentially gone for twenty-three years. Since he was seventeen.”

It was a loud day, filled with laughter and good food. Sam took care of the meat while the sisters brought delicious side dishes. After dinner, the kids took off to watch DVDs on the big screen or jump in the backyard pool or play video games on grandpa’s computer. It was just the adults sitting around the patio tables and they told stories about Jack that almost made him blush.

“Remember, Dad, when you were giving away Jack’s bed and were going to surprise him with a new bigger one because he’d gotten so tall? So heavy?” Immediate laughter from everyone—Mel was the only one not intimate with this story. “A friend of the family wanted the bed for one of his younger kids. He was a respected member of the PTA…”

“Aw, you act like he was the frickin’ preacher or something,” Jack protested.

“And when they pulled off the mattress, Jack’s private library was exposed for all eyes to see,” Donna said, and everyone howled.

“I’d been raising girls,” Sam said. “I completely forgot what boys were doing when they were supposed to be doing homework.”

“At least it was good, solid, decent girlie magazines and not pictures of women in bras from Sears catalog,” Jack said in his defense. “Fine, upstanding, naked women!”

“Here, here,” the brothers-in-law intoned.

“You know,” Mel said, “I’ve noticed there’s only one bathroom besides the master bath in this house…”

Immediate noise erupted—shouts, laughter, whistles, jeering. “We used to have the biggest fights over the bathroom,” one of the women said.

“I wasn’t in that,” Jack insisted.

“You were the worst!” it was accused.

“Plus, when he got the bathroom, he’d stay in there for hours! He wouldn’t give it up until all the hot water was gone!”

“Mom had to give him a timer for his shower—so the rest of us could get clean, too. Of course, he just ignored it. And Mom would say, now, now, I know Jack’s trying. Because Jack was her little precious.”

“I started showering at night—it was the only way,” Donna said.

“Speaking of nights—do you know what he used to do to us at night? Mary and I had the same bedroom, and it was crammed to the ceiling with our stuff. Jack and one of his friends used to sneak in when we were asleep and tie strings to our fingers and toes and connect the strings to stuff around the room, so when we turned over in our sleep—everything came crashing down around us!”

“That’s nothing,” Jeannie said. “I used to come home from school and find all my stuffed animals with nooses around their necks, hanging from my bed canopy!”

“They act like they never did anything to me,” Jack said.

“Do you remember the time we were all in the family room, all five of us, and Mom came into the room with a bunch of condoms in her hand and said, ‘Guess what I found floating in the washer? Jack, I imagine these must belong to you.’”

Wild laughter erupted and Jack got all stirred up. “Yeah, but they weren’t mine, were they? Because mine were right where I’d left them! I suspect Donna!”

“I was a feminist,” Donna declared.

“Mom would never have believed it—Donna was her pride and joy!”

“Donna was screwing around!”

“I can’t take these stories,” Sam said, standing up and going for a beer, making them all laugh.

“It’s okay, Dad,” Donna yelled. “I don’t need birth control anymore!”

When it was time to clean up and the sun had set, the men went off somewhere and three of the sisters insisted that the birthday girl and the guest relax while they did the work. Mel was left with Brie. They sat at the patio table by candlelight.

“My brother has never brought a woman home before,” Brie said.

“After watching him with his family—all these females—it’s so hard to imagine. He’s completely comfortable with women. He should have been married years ago. He should have a big family of his own,” Mel said.

“It just never happened,” Brie put in. “I blame it on the marines.”

“When I first met him, I asked him if he’d ever been married and he said, ‘I was married to the marines, and she was a real bitch.’” Brie laughed. “Have you visited him in Virgin River?” Mel asked.

“Not en masse,” she said. “But we’ve all gotten up there at one time or another. The guys like to fish with Jack and Preacher. Dad will go up there for as long as a couple of weeks at a time—he loves that little bar of Jack’s.”

“Jack seems to have found his niche, his happy place,” Mel said. “I’ve only been there a little over four months, and my adjustment hasn’t been that easy. I’m used to bigcity medicine where you can get anything you want, and fast. This is a whole new game. And I had to drive for two hours to get a decent haircut and frost job.”

“What made you choose Virgin River?” Brie asked her.

“Hmm. The flip side of big-city medicine—I’d had it with the chaos and crime. As I told Jack, I left the E.R. not just because I felt drawn to midwifery, but I thought I could get away from having half my patients brought in by the police. And guess what? The first woman I ever delivered had multiple felony warrants and was being arrested when she went into labor. She was handcuffed to the bed when I examined her prior to delivery.” She chuckled. “I was looking for something smaller and simpler.” She laughed. “I got smaller, but simpler? Little towns like Virgin River have their own challenges.”

“Like?”

“Like how about loading a critical patient in the back of a pickup truck and speeding down the mountain, hanging on for dear life, trying to get her to the hospital before she goes into cardiac arrest. Man, did I ever lust after that big, chaotic emergency room that day. And there’s always the adventure of having your services requested by a big, gun-toting drug farmer in the middle of the night…Um, if you tell Jack that version of the story, there’s going to be a scene.”

Brie laughed. “He doesn’t know?”

“Not some of the details. He was very pissed that I went alone to an unknown location with a man who was basically a stranger.”

“Holy smoke.”

“Yeah, well, it’s a good thing I did. There were complications with the delivery. But I don’t think that will cheer up Jack too much.” She shrugged. “Jack’s protective. Of everyone.”

“Have you found your niche?” Brie asked.

“I kind of crave a trip to Nordstrom’s,” Mel said. “I wouldn’t mind a facial and leg wax, either. On the other hand, I didn’t realize I could get by on so little. So simply. There’s something about that…It’s freeing, in a way. And there’s no question, it’s beautiful. Sometimes it’s so quiet, your ears ring. But when I first got there, I thought I’d really screwed up big—it was so much more rugged and isolated than I expected. The mountain roads terrified me, and Doc and I manage in that clinic with the most rudimentary equipment. The cabin I was promised, rent free for a year, was horrible. In fact, my first morning there the porch collapsed and dumped me into a deep, freezing mud puddle. The cabin was so filthy, I was on my way out of town—running for my life—when a medical emergency stopped me and I reluctantly stayed a few days that turned into a couple of weeks.”

“That turned into a few months…” Brie observed.

“Jack renovated the cabin without being asked, while I stayed at Doc’s house,” Mel said. “About the time I was going to make a break for it, he showed it to me. I said I’d give it a few more days. Then my first delivery occurred and I realized I should give the place a chance. There’s something about a successful delivery in a place like Virgin River where there’s no backup, no anesthesia…Just me and Mom…It’s indescribable.”

“Then there’s Jack,” Brie said.

“Jack,” Mel repeated. “I don’t know when I’ve met a kinder, stronger, more generous man. Your brother is wonderful, Brie. He’s amazing. Everyone in Virgin River loves him.”

“My brother is in love with you,” Brie said.

Mel shouldn’t have been shocked. Although he hadn’t said the words, she already knew it. Felt it. At first she thought he was just a remarkable lover, but soon she realized that he couldn’t touch her that way without an emotional investment, as well as a physical one. He gave her everything he had—and not just in the bedroom. It was in her mind to tell Brie—I’m a recent widow! I need time to digest this! I don’t feel free yet—free to accept another man’s love! Her cheeks grew warm and she said nothing.

“I realize I’m biased, but when a man like Jack loves a woman, it’s a great honor.”

“I agree,” Mel said quietly.

Late, in the dark of night, as he held her in his arms in the bed in his father’s house, she said, “You have the most wonderful family.”

“They love you, too.”

“It was such fun watching you all together. They’re ruthless—you don’t have a secret left!” And she laughed.

“I told you. No slack here.”

“But what fun, to have all that history, all those hysterical stories.”

“Oh—I listened to you and Joey for a few days. You didn’t grow up deprived.” He kissed her neck. “I’m just glad you had fun. I knew you would.” He kissed her neck again, nuzzling closer.

“Your sisters are all so put together,” she said. “Very classy, very sharp. I used to dress like that, before I moved to a place where you’re overdressed in good jeans. You should have seen my closet in L.A.—it was huge, and bulging.”

He pulled the T-shirt she wore up and over her head. “I like what you’re wearing right now. In fact, I find you overdressed in this thong.”

“Jack, I thought we decided, we’re not going to do it in your father’s house…”

“No, you said you weren’t going to.” He slipped the thong down. “I’m thinking of going after that G-spot again…”

“Oh, God,” she said, weakening. “We shouldn’t. You know how we get…”

He rose above her and grinned into her eyes. “Want me to get a sock for your mouth?”

Susan Stone delivered her son in August—a robust eight-pounder. She went to Valley Hospital, had a stunning delivery and was home in Grace Valley in forty-eight hours. It was in Mel’s mind to give her some time alone with her baby, but both John and June called and urged her to come the next Sunday afternoon, the baby not yet a week old.