Chapter 7

After Gussie surrendered sleeping in their bed without a fight, Elynne was uneasy.  Wasn't he going to try?  Elynne sighed and crept to the living room to paint.  She didn't realize how long she had painted until Gussie passed her on his way to the kitchen.  Elynne bit her lip.  This was the first morning she hadn't made Gussie’s breakfast.

Oh well.  He’d live.

Gussie ate leftover grilled cheese, and it made him sick.  He couldn’t believe he’d started that huge argument over pesto!  Basil, cheese, and pine nuts… really?  All he really wanted to do was go into the living room, wrap his arms around Elynne, and forget everything… They needed a vacation.

Gussie’s thoughts were interrupted by two crying children.  After he realized that Elynne was not going to get them out of bed, he shuffled off to the room the Olive and Turner shared… They deserved separate rooms.

Elynne finally tore herself away from her painting when the thought of all the housework she had to do cut off her flow of inspiration.

Elynne sighed.  In a few days, she could no longer be considered a young adult.  Her days were numbered, and there was no way she was going to spend her time on this planet unhappy.  Was that the message she needed to send to her children?

The rest of the day, she went about her chores and took care of the children in a daze, and that daze caused her a lot of problems come lunch time.

There was one thing Elynne was sure of—she needed some help.  She started to call the maid service, but quickly shut her cell phone.  There was no money for a maid.  She was going to have to suck it up until something changed.

Instead, she called the local appliance store, and ordered a newer stove.  She knew she should have waited for Gussie, but she would fix his favorite meal for dinner to make up for the whole ordeal.

Gussie was in good spirits when he got home.  He had just gotten a promotion!  He was an intern now which meant no more ambulance rides, but it also meant a lot more on call shifts.  Gussie didn’t mind though.  They needed the money, and Elynne had been hard to handle lately.

Gussie did not expect to be surprised with Goopy Carbonera after the way things had gone the other night, but there Elynne was.  She was all cleaned up and pretty as a picture smiling at him over a plate of his favorite meal… he noticed the new stove out of the corner of his eye, but didn’t want to ruin the moment.

They talked and played footsie under the table like old times while the children played.  Instead of heading to bed directly after supper, Gussie offered to deal with the children.

After everyone was bathed and put to bed, Gussie noticed that Elynne had also turned in early.  Looking out the window, he noticed that her garden hadn’t been tended to in a few days.  That was so unlike Elynne.  The kids must have really been putting her through the ringer.

He was tired, and he had to be at work in 6 hours, AND he was on call, but he wanted to surprise her.

When Gussie finished with the garden, and after he took a shower, he started to unroll his sleeping bag, but instead of zipping himself in, he crept over to the bed.  Elynne either had no idea what was going on, or she was starting to forgive and forget.

But you know what they say about a woman scorned…

Chapter 6

Things were going pretty well for Elynne and Gussie in the next weeks… other than Gussies transgressions.  Elynne knew all about it, but she couldn’t bring herself to talk to Gussie about it yet.  She loved him so much, and just wanted to pretend for a moment that things were perfect still... until one not so relaxing afternoon.

It was Gussie’s lunch break, and Elynne hadn’t had the time to make anything exciting, so she just put together some grilled cheese.  Turner had been a handful that day, and he needed all of Elynne’s spare time to learn to walk and talk.

“You know what would really make this good?” Gussie said through a mouthful of grilled cheese, “pesto!”

Elynne stared at him fixedly.  Gussie obviously didn’t get it because he went on to explain to her how to make pesto, and how easy it was to preserve.

“Really, Elynne!  Hailey makes awesome pesto!” and as soon as the words were out of his mouth he knew he was in trouble… He didn’t think Elynne knew, but he also noticed Elynne getting tense lately whenever he mentioned work, or anything to do with Hailey.

That’s when Elynne’s fury unleashed itself.  She just could not take it anymore.

“Well, then Hailey must just do everything better than me then.” Elynne snipped.

Gussie’s face fell, and even though he wanted to try to deny what had been going on with Hailey, he knew at this moment that Elynne knew everything.

“Elynne—“

“Oh no you don’t” Elynne glared at Gussie.  “You’ve had weeks to make a confession, and it has been making me sick.  The baby can’t handle all of this stress, Gussie.”

Gussie zoned out… he had enough on his plate, and just gave up.  No matter what he said Elynne was not going to listen anyway.  He got up to kiss her goodbye, but she slapped him.

“I don’t know what to say, Elynne.” Gussie sighed, and left for work without waiting for a response.

Elynne cleaned up the kitchen before waking Turner up from his nap.  It was time for him to work on walking again.  After he finally got the gist of walking, Elynne felt a cramping sensation in her belly, but tried to ignore it.  She was sure it was just the baby reacting to the stress.

She went about her chores as usual, but when she was getting ready to give Turner a bottle and doubled over in pain, she knew it was time to visit the hospital. 

After calling a sitter for Turner, she was on her way.  On the taxi ride to the hospital, Elynne was so mad that she didn’t even call Gussie, but she was sure he would be notified when she got there.  She pressed her forehead against the glass window, and bit her lip.  What a terrible mess she had gotten herself into.

After two hours of excruciating pain, Gussie was at her side, and Elynne gave birth to a beautiful baby girl.  They hadn’t really talked about names after the party incident with Hailey… actually they hadn’t really talked at all.

“Olive,” Elynne cooed as she held her newborn baby girl.  “She’s definitely an Olive.”

Gussie faked a smile, and together they brought her home.

It took forever to get both of the children ready for bed especially since Gussie had gotten called back to the hospital.  Being a paramedic was a demanding job that was for sure.

When Gussie finally got home, he was dead tired, and ready to fall into bed.  He hoped that Olive would be a new start for their family, but got a rude awakening.

Elynne had laid her sleeping bag out for him… She wasn’t even willing to try anymore.

Well, if that was how things were going to be, then Gussie wasn’t going to try anymore either.

Chapter 5

                This pregnancy seemed to be going a lot smoother for Elynne.  Yes it was hard to deal with an infant and a pregnancy, but if Gussie could work as hard as he had been to make ends meet, Elynne could grin and bear it.  Her produce was sought after throughout Appaloosa Plains, and she started to fetch higher prices at market.  People sought her out and paid double just to be able to get their hands on some of her produce.  Jazzlyn even paid extra for delivery.

                However, Elynne just had this underlying feeling that something wasn’t right, and she found out what it was late one night.

                Elynne had gotten up with Turner in the middle of the night for a feeding and a diaper change when she heard Gussie’s voice from their bedroom.  It sounded like he was talking on the phone which was ridiculous because it was 3:00AM! 

She put Turner to bed, and cleaned the kitchen while she waited for Gussie to get off the phone.  She was sure it was Hailey, Gussie’s boss.  That was the only person he’d been taking phone calls from recently.  Elynne normally didn’t think anything of it until just now.

By the time she was tired enough to go back to bed, Gussie had been off the phone for a while.  She slipped under the covers, and fumed for several hours until she finally passed out.

The next morning, Turner aged up.  He was a toddler now!

Elynne was so happy she could hardly contain herself.  Gussie went out and bought a birthday cake for Turner, and the three of them ate it for breakfast.  Elynne decided that last night was not a big deal, and that she had been over reacting.  Gussie was such a good husband and father.  Surely whatever was going on was work related.

…Until his phone rang.

Gussie leapt up from the table, and walked hastily to the bedroom.

Elynne rolled her eyes, and looked at Turner.

“What are we ever going to do with your daddy?  He’s working so hard that he can’t even spend your birthday without taking a call.”

“Hey hun,” Gussie was beeming, “there’s a situation at work tonight.  Someone called off, and they need me to come in.”

“They work you to death,” Elynne snipped, “you shouldn’t be so excited to go work.  You’ve already worked your fair share of overtime this week.”

Gussie’s face fell, but he didn’t respond, and sure enough, when six o’clock rolled around, he was out the door.  What he didn’t tell Elynne, was that he was headed to a party at Hailey’s.

When Gussie pulled up to Hailey’s house, he was in shock.  She had a beautiful modern home with a two car garage.  Gussie couldn’t wait to make that much money… Of course, he’d never have a place this nice if Elynne kept getting pregnant.  Inside, there were plenty of good looking women, and Gussie was ready to party.

“Hey gorgeous,” Hailey purred.  Just hearing her voice gave Gussie goosebumps.  “I take it your wifie finally let you get out and have a good time.”

Gussie gulped and nodded.  Several women came up to him that night, but he never took his eyes off Hailey

After he got up enough courage, he invited her upstairs…

But someone overheard.

Hailey grabbed Gussie’s hand, and the headed for her room.

“Are you sure?” Hailey asked tentatively, “I kind of feel bad… isn’t your wife pregnant?”  Hailey sat down on the bed.  The tone in her voice made her sound worried, but she looked like she had done this before.

“I don’t know anything anymore…” Gussie sighed.  He had drank a ton of nectar tonight, and had been so excited to get out of the house that he hadn’t eaten.  He was a mess.

“It’s alright, Gussie,” Hailey whispered, “I won’t tell… you deserve some fun.”

The next thing Gussie knew, it was 9:00AM, and he was in Hailey’s bed.  What happened?

Hailey woke up when she heard Gussie getting dressed, and grabbed his hand.

“Did you have fun sweetheart?” She asked.

“Hailey, this is a mistake.  I have to go.”

“But you said—“

“I know what I said, but Elynne needs me right now.  I love you.  I always have since I first met you in grade school, but I can’t do this to Elynne.”  Gussie shouted. 

“Then you shouldn’t have started this.” Hailey hissed.  “Mark my words.  You will regret this.”

                Gussie glanced at his phone.  Elynne had called him several times, and was probably worried sick… Unless she knew what had happened.  Gussie had to tell her…

                …but someone else already had.

Chapter 4

                That night, as promised, she went to see Gussie.  Elynne really hoped this was going to be a true fresh start.  She’d had these conversations with boyfriends in the past, but they never really worked.  Gussie wasn’t her boyfriend yet, but she had hoped he would be.

                Before she could say anything, Gussie shook his head at her with a little smile.

                “Hi, I’m Gussie.  Have we met before?” He smiled

                “I don’t believe so,” Elynne giggled.  “I’m Elynne, and you look absolutely dashing.”

                Instead of the never ending conversations, they had had the other two nights, this time, Elynne couldn’t help herself.  She flirted and did all those cheesy things she had seen people in movies do on their dates.  Gussie seemed to enjoy it though.  He even flirted back.

                They spent the rest of the night watching the stars and talking about their lives.  Elynne really enjoyed listening to Gussie talk.  It was nice to hear someone else’s story for a change.

                After hours of just being together, Elynne was finally way too tired to keep the night going.

                “I guess it’s time for me to go home.” Elynne moped. “I have been enjoying myself though!”

                “Me too,” Gussie smiled and pulled her close.

                And that’s when Elynne found out he was a great kisser.  Over the next couple of weeks, they spent all of their spare time together.  It was hard for Elynne to see him as much as she wanted because she had her garden to tend to, and her appliances kept breaking.  It also seemed like Gussie was the bouncer at The Watering Hole every single night!

                The only dates they ever had time for were afternoon lunches if Elynne got up at the crack of dawn to finish her chores, but it was worth it.  Everything was going according to plan until Gussie decided he wanted to see her house… if you could call it that.  It was more like a shack.

                Lunch wasn’t the only thing on the menu that afternoon…

                After that afternoon, they met more often at Elynne’s house.  They mostly stayed indoors, and Elynne cooked their lunches improving her cooking skills.  She showed Gussie around her garden, and he taught her how to play chess.  After a couple of weeks, Elynne knew something was amiss.

                She had been feeling queasy lately, and had missed a very important monthly event.  Sure enough, she was expecting…  She wasn’t quite sure how to feel because she was having a hard time supporting herself.  And what was Gussie going to do?  He was a bouncer, not a surgeon.

                After she broke the news, he proposed on the spot.

                She knew it wasn’t the right time, but the fact that he wanted to help made her burst into tears of joy.  She did love him after all didn’t she?  They made a few additions to their house, and Gussie promised he would work hard to build a comfortable life for the three of them.  After he gave his job at the Watering Hole two weeks notice, he signed on to work for the hospital doing anything they wanted him to.  By the time Turner Beckett came into the world, Gussie had received three promotions!  Things weren’t comfortable yet, but they were getting there, and there was a light at the end of the tunnel.

                Turner Beckett was born brave, and he loved it when his mother carried him around the garden.  Elynne told him everything she was doing, and how to tell if the produce was ripe enough for picking.  Of course none of it stuck, but Turner loved the time she spent with him.

                To make ends meet until Gussie made it to the top of the medical career, he did some side work for the science lab.  He researched planets, stars, and anything else they could think of to keep him busy.

                Not too long after Turner was born, Elynne felt that nauseous feeling again.  Hadn’t they been careful?  It was hard enough caring for one baby.  She brushed those feelings aside and hoped, that she was just exhausted from keeping up with an infant.

                Eventually, her pregnancy was confirmed, and she had to tell Gussie.  He already worked so hard to help feed their family…  How was this going to affect him?

                When she told him, he didn’t even hesitate.  He was so excited to be a father again that he didn’t once think about where the money was going to come from even though they still owed the hospital money from Elynne’s first pregnancy.

                Taking care of a needy infant and battling morning sickness was not an easy task, but Elynne persevered.  If Gussie was working hard, she would strive to work harder.  This wasn’t the worst thing she had ever been through.

                As a surprise, Gussie took a vacation day off in the middle of the week.

                “Elynne, you’ve been working so hard, go treat yourself.  I’ve gotten some extra money from the science lab, and I think you deserve a spa day.” He squeezed her tight.

                “Oh Gussie, we need so many things for the new—“ Elynne started, but Gussie waved her off.

                “Get out of here!  I need to spend some time with Turner without having to compete with you for has affection!” Gussie laughed.

            

                After her massage, Elynne felt refreshed.  Motherhood wasn't so bad, and didn’t someone tell her once that two children were easier than one child because they played together?

 Oh how wrong they were.

Chapter 3

              The next morning, Elynne ate waffles that were burnt and under cooked at the same time..  Hopefully one of these days she’d figure out how to properly cook waffles.  After gagging on her breakfast, she peered out her window to check out her plants.

Uhm… What?  Nobody said anything about weeds.  Other than that though, everything seemed to be growing just fine.  She attempted to pull the weeds, but she was afraid she was going to pull out the plant itself too so she left it alone.  She figured she would just water it extra.

The next few days she spent gardening and painting, and she eventually got the hang of gardening, but her painting needed a lot of work.  She was also really lonely.  The town only had one hangout, so she headed out to the Watering Hole that night.

Elynne met a dorky celebrity named Kenji, and immediately the paparazzi started paying attention to her.  She could just imagine the headlines for page six tomorrow.  D list celebrity takes home a charity case.  Sheesh!  It was one drink!

She was just leaving when she spotted a gruff looking cowboy at the door.  Had he been there all along?  Elynne got jittery, but she decided to introduce herself.

“You look awfully lonely over here,” Elynne batted her eyelashes.

“Not anymore!  I’m Gussie.” His face immediately softened, and the two got lost in conversation.

There were a few times when he had to run over to the door and look mean because someone was approaching the door, but once they were gone, he walked back over to Elynne.  They even had a common interest: gardening!

She didn’t get home until the sun was nearly up.  Needless to say, it took her a few days to recover.  For nearly a week she had butterflies in her stomach, but she was determined not to come on too strong.  After all, she was a hopeless romantic.  Elynne tended to get carried away when it came to dealings of the heart.

Elynne threw herself into her gardening, and eventually got some pretty nice looking plants.  She didn’t get a lot of money for the produce, but she at least got enough to spend another night out at the Watering Hole.  Gussie was sure to be there.

Elynne’s stomach dropped.  She couldn’t go meet up with Gussie in the same old jeans and t-shirt that she had seen him in the night before!  She wasn’t really a dressy girl anyway, but she needed to splurge on something at least halfway decent.   She decided to buy a mirror and pay more attention to her appearance.  Elynne almost wished she hadn’t.

                Elynne’s eyebrows were definitely in desperate need of an eyebrow wax, and a facial wouldn’t hurt.  Oh gosh, and that hair.  Did she own a brush?  That was that.  Tonight, Elynne was going to get a makeover.

                The stylists all fought to get their hands on her.  Clearly she was a good candidate for a makeover.  One of the stylists tried to stick her in six inch heels, but Elynne opted for the cowboy boots.  She was sure Gussie would appreciate them.

                When they were finished, the stylists gasped.  They said she was totally pulling off the whole girl next door look.  Elynne rolled her eyes.  She had never really been the type of girl that went for a "look."

                The stylists had done a fine job.  They gave her a fresh new look for her fresh new start.  Elynne was feeling so empowered that she almost got a tattoo, but she chickened out at the last minute.  She was way too nervous.

                When she approached the door, she had to laugh at his gruff expression.  It didn’t really suit him.  How could he hope to scare anyone looking like that.

                She took a deep breath, but that didn’t help.  Had she mistaken the signals she had gotten oh so many nights before?  Would he recognize her now?  Had he forgotten about her?  Elynne almost turned and ran, but she was sure he had already seen her so she kept on going.

                “Nice to see you again, Elynne,” he winked at her while holding his position at the door.

                “Likewise,” Elynne curtsied.  Wait… did she really just curtsy?  Had she ever curtsied before in her life?  Good grief!  She was acting like a nut!

                “I hope you enjoy yourself in there,”

                “Actually… I was here to see you,” Elynne blushed and Gussie smiled.  Again they got lost in conversation, and actually became friends.

                “Hey Elynne!  Wow!  You look very nice!” Shawnee’s unmistakable voice floated over her shoulder.  Gussie immediately stiffened.

                “Enjoy your night, Mr. Fox,” Gussie nodded politely.

                “You too, Gussie.”  Shawnee turned to face Elynne.  “Maybe we’ll see you inside and I’ll buy you a drink so you can tell me how everything is going.”

                “Alright!  I’ll see you guys in side!” Elynne beamed and waved before turning her attention back to Gussie.

                Elynne tried to continue their conversation, but Gussie was just not as into it as before.  Had she done something wrong?  She was just about to leave when Gussie spoke up.

                “You know, news travels fast around town,” Gussie said evenly, “Cheyenne told everyone about you and Shawnee.”

                “Gussie, I promise nothing happened.  Shawnee is a really nice guy, and honestly I think it is all in Cheyenne’s head,” Elynne blurted out.  “You’re awesome, and I would really like to get to know you without worrying about what everyone is saying behind my back.”

                “Alright, alright.” Gussie said dismissively.  “It’s my fault for taking her too seriously, but rumors fly around here.  It’s a small town, y’know.  Come back tomorrow and we’ll start over.”

                Elynne walked away disappointed because all the progress she had made was erased.  They weren’t even friends anymore.

                The next day, Elynne took her time going about her chores.  She was in a terrible mood, but spending time outside in her garden cheered her up.

                When she finished her gardening, she painted for a while.  Rumors sure did fly around this town, and she had a local gossip named Gloria following her around all morning.

“Someone saw you at The Watering Hole with Kenji.  There are rumors all over town of a fledgling romance.  Would you like to confirm or deny?"

                Gussie had told her plenty of funny stories about Gloria the previous night.  Gloria wasn’t just a local gossip.  She had a column in the local newspaper and a blog.  Gussie made sure to emphasize it was always a good idea to keep your mouth shut around Gloria.  So no matter what Gloria said, she was determined to stay silent.

                “You know, I heard you were talking to Gussie at the door last night.  He is quite a catch you know.”  Gloria purred.

                “You think so?”  Elynne blushed putting her hand to her face.  Elynne turned around to face Gloria and gasped.  Gloria held a tape recorder in her right hand, and the little red light was blinking.  Elynne stormed inside.  She was going to have to do something about this privacy issue.  She hadn’t said anything wrong, but you really just never know how people will misconstrue things.

                Even while she was cooking dinner she got calls about what brand she had been wearing the other night and where she had gotten her hair done.  Someone even had the nerve to ask her some very intimate questions about Kenji that made Elynne gag.  She didn't even finish making her meal after that conversation.

                

                If only she could take back the drink she shared with Kenji.  It wasn’t worth all of this trouble.  She was having enough problems fitting in.

Chapter 2

                After spending a beautiful night under the stars in a sleeping bag, Elynne figured out two things.  She learned that the land that she had inherited was worth keeping, but she also learned that it might be a bit more enjoyable if she had a house.  Unfortunately funds were low, and she had already wasted a day.

                She knew that she would need some sort of shelter, and she didn't know who else to call, so she phoned the first number on a truck that drove by that morning.  She told the woman who answered the phone how much money she had to work with, and the woman laughed, but said she’d accept the job.  A team would be over today.

                Elynne picked up her basket of produce from the day before and hid it in the bushes hoping that no animals would come by and make a meal of her only food.  Who knew how much money Elynne would have after the contractors finished with her property?  Heaven forbid she’d have to go back over to Shawnee and Cheyenne’s.

She set out to see the sights.  She had heard Shawnee and Cheyenne mention there were a lot of horse people in town, and Elynne decided maybe she should get a horse.  Why not?  It might help her get to know all the people in town.

She quickly changed her mind after visiting the Equestrian Center.  Those horses were way too expensive.  Who was Elynne kidding anyway?  She couldn’t really take care of herself right now much less someone else.

                The sounds of horses made her turn.  Was that a training center too?  Wow this town sure was into their horses.  Elynne decided to check it out.  She had plenty of time didn’t she?  On the way over she met someone new, and out of desperation begged them to help her find a job.

                “I’m Jazzlyn!”

                “I’m Elynne, and I am in desperate need of a job.  Where’s a good place to work around here?”

                “The supermarket is hiring!”  Jazzlyn chirped,“They also purchase fruits and vegetables locally to support our town.  So if you know of anyone who could work the checkout, or a gardener with extra produce, let me know.  Oh, here’s my card.”

                “Thanks,” Elynne grinned, “I’ll let you know!”

                How well could a checkout girl afford to build her own house?  Oh well, at least she could eat.

                The rest of the day, Elynne watched horses and trainers at the training grounds.  The horses really put Elynne’s mind at ease.  She found herself cheering for them on the sidelines, and congratulating them when they finished their training even though the horses probably didn’t understand what she was talking about.

                Just as dusk was beginning to fall, the contractors called.  We finished your house, and I think you’ll find that it was well within your budget.

                Good news?  Did Elynne really just get good news?  It was the first time that something positive had happened to her in at least a week, but she was hungry, and since the contractors finished under budget she figured that she deserved a treat.

                The closest restauraunt was quite a haul, but the food and company was well worth it.

                When she returned home, she was too tired to care about the structure that the contractors had built so she just decided to fall asleep in her good old sleeping bag courtesy of Cheyenne.

                Since she spent all night out and about, Elynne woke up late in the afternoon.  After rolling up her sleeping bag, she checked out the contractors’ work.

                Elynne suddenly got what they had meant by well within her budget.  She couldn’t get too mad though because she had no job to finance a mortgage payment, and no money for a better shack.  Her phone started ringing and she saw Shawnee’s name on the caller ID. 

                Ignore.

                That situation was too much drama for Elynne.  Shawnee seemed harmless.  Honestly when Cheyenne threw her out last night, she was completely blindsided.  Remembering last night, made Elynne think about the basket of produce she had hidden in the bushes.  Scooping up the basket, she ran inside.

                After placing her produce in the fridge she decided to try her hand at cooking.  It wasn’t as easy as her mother had made it look.  She actually felt worse after she ate the food than she did before.

                After her failed cooking attempt, she decided to read the paper, and find a class to take.  Elynne needed something to do to distract from the pain she still felt when it came to the death of her parents.  She needed to meet some new people anyway.

                She saw a class in painting on sale, and decided to head to the school.  Immediately, she was in love with the art.  So in love, that she invested in her own easel.  Besides she still hadn’t heard back from the lady that worked at the grocery store.  She needed a way to make money! 

And then she remembered what Jazzlyn told her.

 Since the supermarket was very concerned about the local economy, maybe they’d consider selling her produce… Or if she ran out of money, she would at least have something to eat.  All you had to do was plant and water right?

It hadn’t been that hard to garden at Cheyenne and Shawnee’s, had it?  She picked out an apple, a bunch of grapes, and a head of lettuce to plant in the backyard.

                That night she sat at her window debating about what to do from here.  She wasn’t really focusing on anything until she saw two deer grazing in her backyard.  Elynne had never seen deer this close before, and she jumped up from the table, and ran outside.

                The deer took her breath away.  She sat outside for a long time watching them until they ran off.  While she was gazing at the stars, Elynne noticed two big bright stars in the night sky, and imagined that they were her parents watching over her.  They must have planned for her to one day take over this plot of land.  If they liked this plot of land enough to keep it safe while their whole world was crashing down, there had to be something special about it.

She was going to make a life here.