Mel

Mel escapes to Virgin River from Los Angeles after the death of her husband. She takes up a trial run as a nurse practitioner with Doc Mullins, who gives her a hard time for quite awhile. She proves herself, though, and he eventually sees how much of a help she is for his practice. Mel is unsure if she'll stay in Virgin River, because she doesn't know if Doc will want her to stick around, but in the end, he welcomes her and asks her to stay.

However, thing with Jack don't go quite as well. As the two get to know each other, she realises that he has a sort-of girlfriend, Charmaine. He and Charmaine break things off, though, so that he can be with Mel, but when Charmaine finds out she's pregnant, it throws a wrench into everyone's plans. Mel decides she can't stay in Virgin River because she can't handle Charmaine having Jack's baby.

It turns out Mel had a stillborn baby back in LA and then found out she couldn't have children. Knowing she's unable to have children with Jack (or anyone) makes the news of Charmaine's baby too much for her to handle, so the last we see of her at the end of season one is her calling her sister to tell her she's coming home.

Jack

Jack's a little rough around the edges but warms up throughout the season. The former military man struggles with night terrors and getting close to anyone, which is part of why he's kept Charmaine at arms' length for years.

After he and Charmaine split, he finally lets himself get close to Mel, officially wooing her. Alas, that's when Charmaine drops the bomb that she's pregnant despite never thinking she'd have children. She writes a letter to Jack to tell him, which Hope intercepts. Hope accidentally spills the beans to Mel before Jack can tell her, causing a tiff between them.

Jack tells Mel he's falling in love with her, but she tells him she can't handle him having Charmaine's baby. Though Charmaine tells Mel that she knows Jack feels for her the way he'd never felt for anyone else, Mel still is seemingly ready to walk away, leaving Jack behind.

Hope

Hope is the epitome of a busy body who is in everyone's business but is still well-loved by the community. After suffering a heart attack, Mel puts her on a new diet and a new healthy-living plan. Hope turns around and asks her husband, Doc, for a divorce. Through the whole first season, the two argue about actually getting the divorce and who's paying for it.

In the end, Doc tries to take Hope out on a date, but she's so distraught over accidentally telling Mel about Charmaine's baby. Doc comforts her and the two end up kissing like nothing had ever gone sour between them.

Doc

Doc adamantly does not want Mel to help him at his practice. He tries repeatedly to push her away but she doesn't budge. She continues to prove her worth to him and he soon warms up to him. She helps him with his patients, showing how seamlessly they can work together. Together they save a whole family from being poisoned, rushing them to the hospital.

It's then that Doc realises how important Mel has become to his practice and to Virgin River. At the hospital while they're waiting to hear about the family they've rushed in, he offers to bring her coffee, which she can see as a peace offering. He asks her to stay on at the practice, even adding her name to the sign outside the door and making her coffee when she shows up for work.

Doc also seems to maybe want to make things work with Hope if that last kiss is anything to go by.

Preacher

Jack's best friend Preacher, who runs the bar with him, is starting to fall for Paige but he realises something is off with her. She finally opens up about her past life and why she and her son are hiding under new identities, so Preacher is on high alert to take care of them.

When a questionable man comes into the bar, Preacher immediately suspects he has something to do with Paige, but he can't get ahold of her. When he shows up to her house later, the door is open, she and her son are gone, and there's blood on the floor.