Beautiful Days (Jason Of The Valley Book 5)

by Jason K. Melby

  "Hi. I didn't think anyone was here." Mike said.

  "Same here."

  "I'm kind of having a little moment here, so I need to know that I'm in the right place. This is where Lila and Ross Turner live, correct?"

  "Yes. I believe so. Who are you?"

  "I'm their son, Mike." The man's face grew red almost instantly and his posture became a bit more humble.

  "Shit! I'm sorry. I was just,"

  "I know what you were doing. I know what's going on. I guess this is almost a good thing. I came here to deal with this head on, and now I really get to do that."

  "You're rather calm."

  "For now, yes. What's your name?"

  "I'm Jeff. I'm a guest of your,"

  "I know, I know. I just can't really hear the words right now, but I know. I really didn't think this was going to happen so quickly. And where did she find you? I mean, damn!"

  "Thanks." Jeff laughed nervously and seemed to begin to relax again.

  "Look, I can come back later. Just forget I was even here and go back to whatever it was you two were doing."

  "All right. You're taking this very well."

  "At least she's got herself a good one. I guess I see where I get my taste in men." Mike laughed oddly and then started toward the door, but as he took grip of the doorknob, he heard someone else rushing down the stairs. Despite all his instincts not to, he turned and felt his stomach fall to the floor as he saw his father, dressed similarly as Jeff, come running down.

  "Jeff! I got some more of that lube! This is a lot more," Ross Turner began, but as his eyes found his son below him, he stopped. "Slick."

  Chapter 12

  The Neverending Battle Of The Bulge

  As Cynthia awoke, she wasn't sure if her eyes were yet open since it was so dark, but once her brain adjusted she just saw that the sun was not yet up. She turned and saw Douglas fast asleep, snoring like a chainsaw and content in his slumber. She gave him a dirty look as she hoisted herself out of bed. She stealthily changed into her jogging togs and snuck out without a sound.

  The air was brisk and cool as she stepped out onto the sidewalk. The sky was mostly dark, but there was a light blue hue near the horizon as the sun began to creep into sight. She then popped in her earphones and started her run. She had incorporated a light jog each morning in addition to her regular workout routine. She had been on her program for two weeks as of that morning and while many trainers advised weighing yourself each day, Cynthia chose to avoid the scale at all costs. She felt the numbers would just upset her. She weighed herself once when she first started and had no plans to weigh herself again until she started fitting into smaller clothes.

  Cynthia came to enjoy her morning run. She hated getting up before dawn, but once she was out it was actually very nice. It felt like a totally new world before everyone was up. There was absolutely no sound at all. No traffic. Not even any birds or barking dogs. It was just deep, complete silence and in that peace, Cynthia was able to think clearly and truly become one with herself.

  She began to hear some of the neighbors' sprinklers go off and the sky was becoming a lighter shade of blue. Those were the signs that her jog time was nearly over. She rounded the corner and she was just a block away from her home.

  "Cynthia!" Someone called out. Cynthia stopped and turned to see Victoria Jennings emerge from her home. She had the largest and most well decorated house on the block. She had sweet talked the homeowners association into allowing her to hire a professional landscaper to layout her front yard. She had a large willow tree just by the house and a small waterfall that emptied into a little pond in the middle of her lawn. It was gorgeous, just as Victoria was. She had a slender build with a model worthy face topped off with long, lustrous blonde hair. She was dressed in a form fitting sweat suit with matching wrist and headbands.

  "Victoria. Good morning." Cynthia said. She looked down at herself and noticed just then how opposite she was from Victoria. Her sweat suit was at least a size too large, so it sagged and bunched in a few spots and her hair was wet with sweat and a bit stringy.

  "It looks like you've had a good run."

  "Well, it's not all sweat. I got a little sprayed by some sprinklers."

  "I'm sure. I just think it's so great you're doing something good for your health."

  "Thanks. I was hoping for your approval. What are you doing up so early?"

  "Oh, I just have seen you on your little runs lately and I guess I got the bug."

  "I wish you would have told me. We could have run together."

  "That would have been fun, but I could never get up as early as you do. Besides, I like to run when the sun's out. I think it's healthier what with the sun and all. Besides, I think people who run before the sun rises only do it out of same shame or embarrassment. Not that you should be ashamed or embarrassed by anything."

  "Of course."

  "Well, I better get going and it looks like you're probably looking forward to a shower." She said and then trotted off. As she reached the corner of the street, Cynthia hoped a car would speed out of nowhere and run her down, but it didn't and with a sad sigh, Cynthia trudged the rest of the way home.

  The door opened and Cynthia felt the change in the house instantly. Ronnie was crying his head off and she could hear Douglas in the shower, singing. She let out a sigh and went on into Ronnie's room. He was still in his crib and as she approached, his crying died down. She checked his diaper to discover it was dry as a bone so she concluded he was hungry. She picked him up and he clutched her with his arms and legs as he normally did.

  "Hungry, huh? I guess I could eat as well." She whispered and then she carried him to the kitchen. She set him up in his high chair and then turned to the fridge. She opened it up and saw a large cake that Douglas had brought home the night before. He reasoned that Cynthia had earned a treat for doing so well on her diet, but she had to refuse his kindness as the cake would have destroyed all the progress she had made. She stared at it for a bit. It was a double layer chocolate cake with chocolate fudge frosting and it was dotted with little chocolate chips.

  A little yelp from Ronnie roused Cynthia and she grabbed the milk and then went to the pantry and fetched the special baby cereal she had been giving to Ronnie. She fixed him up a bowl and as soon as she set it in front of him, he drove his hands into it and started shoving the little toasted bits into his mouth, splashing the milk all over the tray and onto the floor. Cynthia was too tired and hungry to care, so she shrugged her shoulders and went back to the fridge for her breakfast. Her stomach was rumbling and the thought of pancakes or waffles appealed to her. She could even see herself enjoying an omelet or a pile of scrambled eggs with some peppers and onions mixed in with a side of salsa. She then spotted her breakfast. A cylinder in the back of the fridge filled with a protein shake she had whipped up the night before. She reached in and took it. As she pulled the top off and looked down at the drink, she felt a bit underwhelmed. She then sat down next to Ronnie, who was still pigging out, and swirled the shake around a bit.

  "At least it's chocolate." She said to herself. She then tipped the cup up and drank. It tasted all right, she thought. It tasted somewhat like chocolate and it was filling her up. She then heard the coffee machine come on so she turned just in time to see Douglas bounding in. He ran up behind her and kissed her on her cheek.

  "Good morning!" He said.

  "Morning." Cynthia grumbled.

  "What's the matter with you?"

  "Nothing. I had my run and I'm just sitting here drinking my breakfast. My world's going great!"

  "You want me to fix you something?"

  "You don't have time to do that."

  "I could scramble up some eggs. Throw in some veggies and cheese. Served with a glass of orange juice?"

  "No, this is all I need. It's fine." Cynthia said as she drank down the last bit of her shake.

  "You sure?"

  "I'm sure. Thanks, though."

  "I'm sorry about
the cake last night."

  "Don't worry about it. It was sweet of you to think of me like that."

  "I could throw it out."

  "No. You and Ronnie enjoy it. Besides, the way you're going through it, it'll be gone before the weekend."

  "True. I can't resist anything that sweet. Just like you."

  "Please, save your good stuff for when I'm alert enough to enjoy it."

  "You got it," Douglas said as he filled his thermos with coffee. "You want any left over?"

  "Oh, no. You take it all. Coffee's not good for my diet."

  "How is coffee not good? It'll get you up. Give you energy."

  "And then I'll crash and I won't be able to do anything. Your chemically assisted energy is fine for your world, but I need to get mine naturally."

  "Suit yourself. I'm going to need every drop. I've got inspectors coming today. I hate those little shits. They act like it's their job to find every little thing we do wrong."

  "Uh, well, isn't it?"

  "Yes, but it's not like they have to always be so good at it."

  "Well, I'm sure it'll go great."

  "I hope," Douglas then closed up the thermos and grabbed his bag from beside the door. He ran back over to Cynthia and pressed his lips to hers. "I'll see you tonight."

  "Count on it. Love you."

  "Love you too. You too, squirt." Douglas said as he kissed Ronnie on the top of his head, but it went unnoticed as Ronnie was still obsessed with getting every little bit of cereal into his mouth.

  Cynthia dropped Ronnie off at pre-school and then went on to the gym, per her schedule. She parked her car as far as possible in order to burn a few more calories walking and then grabbed her gym bag from the trunk. When she walked in and was glad to see the gym wasn't too busy. It looked as though there were plenty of machines open and everything seemed nice and quiet. She flashed her card to the guy at the desk and went on to the locker rooms. She changed and returned to the main floor. She hopped up onto a nearby elliptical machine and got started on her warm up. She enjoyed the beginning of her work out. She could relax into her cardio and since there were monitors hanging from the ceiling, she was able to enjoy some mind numbing mid-morning television. It was also nice that at the time of day it appeared that most of the people at the gym were more like her. There weren't any outrageously fit people strutting around. Most of the women looked to be moms themselves who were also working hard to lose the baby weight.

  "Cynthia!" Victoria's melodic voice called out. Cynthia turned and saw her approaching.

  "Victoria?"

  "Great minds, I guess."

  "What are you doing here?"

  "I just joined the other day. I told Kent I was thinking about getting back into the workforce, but he was dead set against it. He thinks he makes enough from his law practice so that I can stay home and look after little Cameron. He's right. He does make more than enough, but I just can't stand sitting around the house all day. Cameron is growing up and soon won't need as much attention, but I need a challenge. Kent convinced me, for the time being, if I needed a challenge I should look into keeping myself in shape."

  "You? You're one of the fittest women I've ever seen."

  "You're sweet to say that, but Kent was right. I've gained a few pounds since Cameron was born. Do you know that I'm not a size two? If I'm not careful, I could slide into a three before I know it."

  "No kidding."

  "I have really let myself go and I'm always up for a little self-improvement. I didn't know you came here too."

  "Yeah. I come at least five times a week."

  "How fun! Maybe you and I could be workout buddies! Are you going to be here a while?"

  "I've got another twenty minutes on this, so yeah."

  "Great! Let me go get changed and we can hit it together! That's something they say around here right? Hit it?"

  "Uh, sure."

  "Good. I want to make sure to make a good first impression. I'll be back in a flash." Victoria then dashed off to the locker rooms. Cynthia looked down at the display on her machine and the minutes were crawling by. She hoped that somehow it would take Victoria more than twenty minutes to change, but it had been barely two minutes before she returned and hopped up on the machine next to hers.

  Cynthia wound up leading Victoria through all of her exercises and played unofficial tour guide for the whole gym. She showed her the good water fountain. She introduced her to the attendant that gave the best, cleanest towels. Their session was concluded with a three lap jog on the upstairs interior track. As they were running, Cynthia just noticed that Victoria looked like she had yet to break a sweat, while Cynthia had sweat stains on her back and under her arms. Victoria looked as pristine and perfect as ever. Her energy level never faltered either. In fact, she seemed to becoming more energized with every lap.

  When Cynthia completed the final lap, she bent down and tried to catch her breath. Sweat was dripping from the tip of her nose and she felt gross all over, as usual. It was the sign of a good workout. She turned toward Victoria and saw that she was unchanged. Her hair was perfect and her smile glowed with sugary sweetness.

  "That was such fun!" Victoria said. Cynthia tried to reply, but she was still trying to catch her breath. "Although, I think I'd prefer a more challenging workout. I'm sure this program is fine for you, Cynthia, but I need something that's really going to push me." Cynthia stopped for a moment and noticed that Victoria was standing near a guard rail that ran along the upstairs track. She smiled to herself.

  "Well, I would really love to push you, Victoria."

  "So sweet, but I think I'll just get my personal trainer to come in. Gheit is a master at body transformation. He'll get me back into a double zero in no time. Thanks for showing me around though. I guess it's time to hit the showers!" Victoria then dashed off for the locker rooms, but Cynthia was thinking she could make it home for a shower in her own home.

  Cynthia raced home and hurried into the bathroom where she stripped off her workout clothes and hopped into the shower. She turned on the water and a torrent of warm water cascaded over her. She felt the sweat and dirt come off of her as well as the stress that had been pressing on her. When she stepped out of the shower with her clean hair and soft skin, she felt renewed and actually a little bit lighter. She looked down on the floor and saw her scale. She swore she wouldn't weigh herself, but she thought about all the work she had been putting in and her curiosity was growing too intense. She knew not to expect a miracle. A couple pounds at best. She tossed her towel aside and with a deep breath, she stepped up onto the scale. She closed her eyes and said a silent prayer before opening them again. She looked down at the number and could barely believe it. She ran to her workout journal and opened it up to her first weigh in and saw that she had lost exactly nothing over the past two weeks. She went over to the mirror and took in her form. She tried to see some changes, but there were none. She went back to the scale and got on again, hoping the first time was a fluke, but the numbers came up exactly the same. Something in Cynthia fell and she felt cold and hollow. It was as though the last two weeks had been completely wasted. She fell back against the wall and after a few minutes of quiet, she realized what she really needed.

  Cynthia drove up to the bistro and walked in to find Haley behind the bar cleaning glasses. Cynthia then walked over and sat down right in front of her.

  "Hey, Cynthia. Can I help you?"

  "Pour me a glass of anything red."

  "It's just a few minutes before lunch. Would you like something to eat with that?"

  "No, just the wine. Please."

  "It's kind of early, isn't it?"

  "Do people pay you to ask questions or pour drinks?"

  "Okay. Okay." Haley said as she grabbed a glass and poured out some of the house Merlot. She slid the glass in front of Cynthia and she snatched it up and took a long drink from it. She set the glass down and smiled oddly at her.

  "Sorry. I'm just on edge."

  "I
can see that. What's wrong?"

  "I have been killing myself over the past two weeks to lose this baby weight. I have been dieting. Exercising. I've done everything short of cutting the fat off with a butcher knife. I've been going to the gym. I'm abstaining from treats and sugars. I've been doing everything right!"

  "That's great. How much have you lost?" Cynthia then chugged down the last of the wine in her glass and held it up to Haley.

  "That much."

  "Nothing?"

  "Not an ounce! I have been living off protein shakes and salads for the last two weeks. I wring every last drop of sweat out of my body from the moment I wake up until I finally go to bed and I'm still a house! Another!" Cynthia ordered as she pushed the glass in front of her. Haley poured a little bit more in and set the bottle aside.

  "Maybe the problem is you're taking this too seriously. No one can keep up that kind of regimen."

  "Well, I have to!"

  "Why? Has Douglas said anything?"

  "No, in fact he'd been insisting I didn't have to lose any weight."

  "Then where is this coming from?"

  "Mavis. His new receptionist. His pretty, young, perky receptionist."