“I don’t sleep when you work,” he said, touching her lips again. “Can I get you anything? Breakfast?”
“That would be nice. My children will be awake by the time I get home.”
“Was it hard, baby?” he asked. “After the hysterectomy?”
She shook her head and smiled. “That wasn’t the hard part. There is nothing sad about bringing a new life to a couple as in love as they are.” She kissed him again. “I admit, I was thinking of one more, down the road a bit. I tend to think like that after ours are settled in bed and quiet…”
“We have a lot more than either of us thought we’d get,” he said.
“I’m dealing with it pretty well. I’m telling myself not to be greedy. As long as I have you—”
He laughed, a rich, deep rumbling sound. “As if you could get rid of me now.”
Joe used to look forward to trips to Virgin River—it was such a welcome respite from his demanding work. Usually he was going with a purpose that included his friends—either a gathering of the boys for sport or someone in need of help. In fact, if it hadn’t been for certain memories that were hard to shake, this trip would be a celebration. Preacher’s baby had arrived, and Joe liked babies—he’d been an uncle five times. He’d always thought that by now he’d have a couple of his own.
The drive seemed longer than usual, but he made it before Saturday noon. He went straight to Jack’s bar and once there, his first order of business was to deliver a large bouquet of flowers to Paige. There was no one in the bar and he didn’t even glance into the kitchen, but went straight to the apartment. The door was standing open, so he tapped lightly and went in. He found Paige sitting on the couch with the cradle nearby, folding clothes into neat little piles. “Joe!” she said, her face brightening when she saw him. “Oh my, are these for me?”
“Of course they’re for you, sweetheart. Aren’t you the new mom?” She opened her arms to him and he held her a long moment. “You sure look wonderful for someone who just had a baby.”
“I’ve been very spoiled this week. Lots of help. When you need something, anything, this is the place to be.”
“You’re feeling good?”
“Fantastic. And she’s a good little girl.”
He peered into the cradle. “Ah, then where is she?”
“I’ll give you three guesses. I can’t get John to put her down.”
He chuckled. “Is he holding her while he’s stirring a pot?” Joe asked.
“Lord, I hope not. He said he was going to see if Christopher would lie down for a little nap and took Dana upstairs with him. The one who could use a nap is John. He must surely be exhausted.”
Joe laughed. “Here, honey—sit down. Tell me about it. Did you have an easy time?”
“I had a very long time. It wasn’t so much hard as it took forever. I was starting to think she’d never come. And John almost drove me out of my mind. After about twenty hours of labor, I was afraid he was going to go in after her.”
“He must have been pretty wound up,” Joe said. “Is he pestering you for another one yet?”
“Oh no, I think he’s going to lighten up on all those children he thought he had to have. The birth was kind of hard on John.”
“Really?” Joe said, surprised.
“Yeah, he doesn’t like to see me uncomfortable. And it turns out that this big man who can shoot and dress animals or carry wounded soldiers off the battlefield doesn’t do too well if there’s a drop of blood within ten feet of his wife.”
“He’s a little on the protective side,” Joe confirmed. “Think you’re going to be able to move out to the cabin soon? As soon as you do—we pour the extended-foundation slab and start tearing out walls.”
“Oh—I’m ready,” she said. “I can’t wait to get going on this building. We’re just going to move clothes and toys and the computer. Paul will cover everything, right?”
“It will all be protected—either in storage or pushed up against a safe wall and secured, but you’ll be able to get to it.”
A few minutes later, Preacher wandered in. He was holding the baby in the crook of his arm and she looked small enough to fit in the palm of his hand. Her little pink blanket was wrapped neatly around her, her bald head sticking out of the top, and he handled her as if she were attached to the inside of his forearm. “Joe!” he said, but he said it with quiet enthusiasm. “Great to see you, man.”