But when he got to the sanctuary, he discovered a stunning stained-glass window, boarded from the outside to keep it safe. Almost all the windows had been broken before being covered over with plywood. The place had been stripped bare and filled with years of trash, probably litter from transients who’d taken shelter there at one time or another. The church had been easy to locate and he hadn’t needed a key to get inside-it was boarded up and appeared to have been abandoned for years, but the side door wasn’t locked. He was fit and toned like the local Virgin River men years of working on a fishing boat and dockside, dragging nets, hauling in tons of fresh catch will do that.

But for now, he fit right in, looking like any other laborer after a hard day’s work. His black hair was too long and curled over his collar he planned to get it cut the second he was assigned a church of his own. He fit right in-he wore scuffed boots, his jeans were almost white with wear, ripped here and there, his denim shirt was thin on the elbows and frayed around the collar and cuffs. No one really noticed him in the little town the local men he’d seen either had hair shorn in military fashion or ponytails and beards, just like the fishermen Noah had worked with over the years. The town was a little washed out and the church was a wreck, but there was a peacefulness and simplicity there he couldn’t dismiss. The first thing that struck him was the overwhelming beauty of the mountains, redwoods and rivers. He’d heard Northern California was very beautiful. If nothing else, it would be a good excuse to get out of town for a day and see something different. He’d been waiting patiently for an assignment to a church of his own and thought it couldn’t hurt to take a look at the place himself. He laughed at the very idea, but was intrigued. Recently ordained minister Noah Kincaid was surfing the Internet, killing time, when quite by chance, he happened to find a church being auctioned on eBay-in some little place he’d never heard of-Virgin River.

Forbidden falls by robyn carr