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Better Days

By: SW_MO_Hermit



James Ross was sitting at his desk drinking his first cup of morning coffee. He was staring out his window instead of going through his inbox for the first time like he would normally have done. Normally by this time of morning he would have finished his perusal of the overnight deliveries and made some phone calls to subordinates but his heart just was not in it any longer. He knew he was letting his boss down and he knew he should; he had to get his shit together but he just could not seem to do so. He had already been to three weeks of grief counseling but nothing had improved. He still had trouble sleeping at night and he spent too much time during the work day feeling sorry for himself.

Jim had just sighed and pushed himself away from his desk to make his normal morning trip through the office complex when he heard a gruff voice speak, "As You Were." He quickly straightened to attention and turned to the voice. He made an attempt to smile and said, "Good Morning General."

Major General Stanley Foster smiled and returned the greeting. "Good Morning Sergeant Major." He looked into the eyes of his Division Sergeant Major and continued, "How are you holding up Jim?"

SGM Ross felt his heart lurch and his chest tighten. He took a moment to get himself under control before he replied, "I guess as well as can be expected General. I still miss her so damn much. I" His throat constricted and his eyes watered once more to the point he couldn't speak. He turned from the General so he wouldn't see his eyes and bit his lip. He continued in a broken voice, "Sometimes I don't know how I can make it through the day. I want to tell her something and then I realize I will never be able to do that ever again. Sometimes I'm not sure it's even worth going on."

The General walked up and put his hand on Jim's shoulder and said, "I know how you must hurt Sergeant Major but we all have to go on. You have your children still and you know we all are here for you too if you need help or just need to talk."

The General stood with his friend and remembered years past. Then Sergeant Ross had been one of his squad leaders when he got his first Platoon after being commissioned in the army. Over the intervening years they had been stationed on the same post, many times in the same unit as their careers progressed. Platoon Sergeant Ross had been one of the Platoon Sergeants when he had command of an Infantry Company. A few years later Ross had been a First Sergeant in the Battalion then Lt. Colonel Foster commanded.

As the years progressed their children grew up together and their wives became as near friends as it was possible for an enlisted and officer's wife to become. Neither of the families closely followed the customs of the Army religiously so they had more social interaction than would have normally been common. The men and their wives were kindred spirits and they liked each other's company enough that they ignored the difference in rank as much as possible.

When General Foster was given command of the Division he specially requested Sergeant Major Ross be appointed his Division Command Sergeant Major. By then the children had grown and left home but the men and their wives were happy working and socializing together as much as possible. Of course they followed convention and socialized with their peers more but they still made time for their friends.

The General and his wife were nearly as devastated as were the Ross children and Jim Ross when a drunken soldier ran a stop sign and T-Boned Della Ross's car on post. The autopsy showed she died of a broken neck instantly upon impact. Like happens many times the soldier, the guilty party in this case, was slightly injured and Sergeant Major Ross's wife, the innocent party paid the ultimate price for his stupidity.

Of course the soldier was court-martialed and sentenced to Leavenworth Federal Prison. That did not bring back Della Ross to her loved ones but hopefully the soldier would not kill anyone else. It had not been the soldier's first arrest for alcohol abuse. He had lost stripes for it before and there had been a bar on reenlistment for him because of it. Unfortunately for Della Ross the Army had not managed to get rid of him in time to save her life.

Ever since the accident, now almost three months in the past, SGM Ross had been in a funk. He and his fellow soldiers knew he wasn't performing up to his normal standards. In fact, if the truth was told, he was just managing to marginally perform his duties and he knew he had to do something to get himself together. He felt badly because he was letting his General and his unit down. He just could not seem to get over his loss.

General Foster let his hand slide off the SGM's shoulder and turned to his Aide. He said, "Well, come on into my office Captain and let's get started." The Captain followed, opening his Day planner as he did so. SGM Ross stood a moment longer looking out the window and getting himself under better control then turned to make his interrupted tour through the Division. He made it his practice to stroll throughout most of the division area at least once a day to supervise the senior Sergeants and keep his finger on the pulse of the unit. From time to time he would stop and visit with a young soldier so he could assess morale, training and the needs of his men. This day was no different.

Just before lunch he received a phone call from one of his past commanders, Colonel Paul Fielding, Retired. "SGM, we have been gone and I just heard about Della late last week. Jennifer and I are so sorry for your loss. She was a fine lady." The two friends visited for several minutes longer then as he was ending the call Paul said, "Jim, I've been talking to Stan and he told me you were still having a tough time...I've talked to Dad and we reserved a cabin for you for the next two weeks. Stan says you need to relax and get your head screwed on better and Jennifer and I want you to come down so we can see you."

SGM Ross began telling Col Fielding he could not go to the Resort. He heard a voice and turned from the window he had been looking out of while he talked. General Foster broke into the conversation and said, "Sergeant Major I have been talking to your counselor and to Paul. We are all in agreement you need to get away and wrap your head around this tragedy. I need you at 100% and right now you aren't there. You WILL take the time off. If there is some reason you feel you can't go to the Fielding Resort that's fine but you WILL take some leave."

SGM Ross said, "Yes Sir." He then watched the General walk back into his office before he resumed his interrupted conversation with Paul Fielding. "OK, Sir. I guess you heard or at least know the General has just ordered me to take the time. I'll be there Saturday morning."

That evening Jim packed enough gear to last the two weeks he expected to be at the Fielding Resort, drank his supper and crashed. At his normal rising time of 0530 the next morning instead of putting on the uniform he had worn for the last 27 years he got into some cut off shorts and an old pullover shirt. His head was throbbing and he grimaced thinking he knew better than to drink like he did when he was in his early twenties. He admitted to himself he had been doing way too much of that since Della died. He filled his thermos with coffee and walked out to his F250 super crew powerstroke. He fired up the powerful engine and when it had settled down into a chuckling idle he drove onto the quiet street on his way to what the Fieldings called their own little slice of paradise in the Ozarks.

Late that evening Jim pulled into Steelville. He stopped at the local café for supper then drove out to the resort. Jim Fielding and his son Paul were waiting on him when he arrived. They introduced him to Paul's sons Jeffrey, now a Major in the USAR and Charlie, also a Major in the USAR. After the introductions they all drove to the cabin assigned to Jim Ross and showed him around. After they got him settled they broke out the favorite drink of all five men—18 year old Glenmorangie Quinta Ruban scotch.

Before the evening was over the entire bottle and most of another was drained. None of the men was completely sober. Jim was assured he would see Jim & Paul's wives the next day at breakfast. Jeff and Charlie's new wives would be there also and he could meet them for the first time.

Once again the next morning Jim woke near his usual time. Once again his mouth felt like a dragon had upchucked in it before it died and rotted. His stomach rolled and his head was throbbing. His mouth was dry and he was thirstier than he had been at the worst of times in Iraq. In short, he had another hellacious hang over.

When Jim arrived at the Lodge he was met by glaring stares from four beautiful and tastefully dressed Officer's Ladies. There were hang dog expressions on the faces of four Officers, also hung over. He smiled to himself thinking they were not only in the dog house for coming home at three in the morning roaring drunk but were suffering a hangover at least as bad as was his.

After introductions were made to Abigail and Amanda Jim got hugs from Ann and Jennifer Fielding. They moved to the outside deck of the resort where coffee was served. After about thirty minutes of coffee on the deck overlooking the river waitresses brought out a huge country breakfast. Everyone visited quietly while they consumed the food. When the plates were cleared the visiting continued for some time.

Jim and Ann Fielding were the first to leave, then Jeffery and Abigail. Paul, Jennifer, Charlie and Amanda visited with Jim a short time longer then Charlie offered to show Jim where the best fishing was. Charlie said, "While we're out I'll give you a short tour of the resort and the surrounding countryside."

Charlie was appointed guide allegedly because in his job as a Veterinarian he was more familiar with the roads and countryside. Somehow though Jim got the impression it was a little more. Before they left Amanda gave Charlie a gentle kiss. She stared into his eyes while holding him gently around the waist and said, "Honey I know it still hurts and you need to talk to him but be careful. Call me if you need me. I'm going to worry about you. Be sure to let me know where you end up."

Charlie looked into her eyes and pulled her to him. They exchanged a sizzling kiss this time and Jim thought he saw tears in Charlie's eyes when he stepped back. Charlie looked at her for a moment then he looked at his parents before he said, "We'll just drive around an hour or so then I think we'll go back to his cabin. I have one of the Jon Boats tied up in the Swimming Hole for him to use the next two weeks. I'll be sure he knows how to run it then I think we'll spend the rest of the afternoon visiting unless Jim wants to do something else."

Charlie gave Amanda another loving look then turned to Jim Ross. He said, "Well Sergeant Major shall we hit the road or do you need to do anything beforehand?"

"No Sir. I'm good to go."

Charlie looked at SGM Ross as he leaped up to stand almost at attention. He smiled and said, "Sergeant Major...Jim, you need to loosen up. I know part of this is my fault. I called you by your rank. I meant it as an expression of respect as I hope you know. We are off duty here and in fact, since I am not on active duty right now I am not a Major per se. I would appreciate it if you would call me by my name. I'm Charlie. I would be grateful if I could call you by your given name also..."

Jim felt slightly uncomfortable. After all, for over 27 years he had called his superiors by their rank and here was an O-4, a Major, wanting him to call him by his first name. He looked at Charlie and smiled. "I'll try sir but I don't know. You know how hard it is for us old soldiers to break that kind of habit!"

Charlie smiled and said, "OK Jim. Come on. Let's get into my truck and I'll show you about anywhere you might need to go or want to go while you're here. They drove several miles that afternoon and Charlie showed Jim the best way to get to either of the larger towns in the area—Steelville and Prineville as well as the way to a much smaller town only about ten miles from the resort by road and about five miles by river. This town was called Wilsons Mill. Charlie explained that at one time there had really been a water powered grist mill located there and ran by a man named Wilson, hence the name given to the settlement that had grown up around it. Wilsons Mill was what would now be called a bedroom community. There were no businesses or jobs in the community and it was slowly withering away as older residents died and the younger ones moved away to find work.

They stopped for a while in the little town of about 350 souls. The old mill building was still there but had been closed for years. The old apparatus was still in the building. Charlie told Jim a couple had began refurbishing the mill about ten years ago but either lost interest or ran out of funds about three years ago. He had heard they had divorced shortly thereafter so that might have even been the reason for halting the refurbishment.

Charlie said, "Before they quit they had managed to get the mill wheels turning again. I have heard some of the metal supports were not sound enough for normal operation but I don't know for sure." The mill and five acres surrounding it was for sale. The mill pond dam was still in place but needed extensive repairs as did the millrace. There were numerous large trees on the property and the mill pond was full of steelhead trout because of the cool spring water that fed the stream there. The state stocked the stream every spring to keep the trout population up.

Jim and Charlie sat on the bank of the millpond and knocked back several beers from a cooler Charlie had brought from his truck. They talked for several minutes about many topics but always came back to the Army. Of course like many soldiers, even part time Citizen Soldiers as Charlie was, they played the "do you know so and so" game and told war stories. Of course you know the difference between a fairy tale and a war story is generally the way the story begins. A fairy tale begins "Once Upon a Time" and a war story begins, "No Shit, This Really Happened!"

The two men were feeling no pain when they decided they needed to return to the Resort. When they were getting into the truck Jim looked over at Charlie and asked, "Charlie are you sure you can drive this thing? We've both had way more to drink than we should. I wouldn't want us to do anything that would hurt someone else like Della..."

Charlie was sure he was over the legal limit of BAC from all the beer he had consumed but he knew the back roads home and elected to drive anyway. Most of the roads he was going to use were so sparsely travelled you didn't see a vehicle on them. He said, "Jim I'm probably legally drunk but I am also sure I can do this safely. I promise to drive slowly and stay on the dirt roads all the way back to the resort. If I see a car coming I will stop. I don't want an accident any more than you do." They then buckled themselves into the truck and Charlie drove carefully off. As he promised he drove on the smaller dusty dirt roads back to the Resort. He drove slowly and they continued their conversation. 

When Charlie and Jim got back to Jim's cabin they walked happily through it and onto the deck overlooking the river. On the way through the house Charlie thoughtfully picked up the bottle of Glenlivet some ice and two glasses he saw sitting on the wet bar.

The two men watched the sun slide down behind the trees to the west of the cabin as they talked and drank their scotch. About 630 p.m. one of the waitresses from the lodge brought some chips and Sub Sandwiches down for their supper. By then Charlie and Jim were to the happy, laughing stage of their drinking. For some reason they thought it was uproariously funny when she threatened to call Amanda and tell her Charlie was drunk as a skunk.

After the waitress left to return to the lodge Jim looked toward Charlie. Charlie was sitting staring across the river. Jim said, "You are very lucky to have Amanda. I can tell from last night and our talk today that you love her very much and she loves you the same. Very few men can find a love as intense and fulfilling as I think you two have." Jim choked and his voice got rough as he continued. "I had a love like I see between you and Amanda but some drunk little punk killed her. Sometimes I want nothing more than to get my hands on that little asshole and make him hurt like he hurt my Della. The little shit was driving a brand new Mustang Shelby when he T-Boned her. They estimated he was doing over sixty in a twenty five zone when he ran a stop sign and hit her little Civic on the driver's door. He pushed her car almost seventy five feet before they came to a stop. I had tried to talk her into driving the F250 that day because she was planning on doing a lot of shopping. If she had she might still be alive."

Charlie looked over at Jim and his voice, too, was rough and breaking. He said, "I know how you are hurting Jim but you have to let it go. It took me months to break out of the funk you're in but you have to let it go and move on with your life. I"

"What the hell are you talking about you asshole? How the hell can YOU know how I feel, how empty I feel and how it hurts every time I think about telling Della something?"

Charlie felt his temper rising then forced himself to relax. He had thought Jim knew about Charlene but maybe he didn't. Charlie began to talk. He said, "I don't know how you personally feel about the soldier that killed your wife but I know all too well about the hole in your heart, in your soul from her loss. My first wife Charlene was an Army Aviator. She was commanding an Aviation Company in Afghanistan when she was shot down supporting an operation against the Taliban. She is buried in the family plot at the cemetery in Steelville. I spent many an evening trying to forget her and looking for my happiness at the bottom of a bottle like you are doing. I used to sit along the river bank with my booze and my sorrow wishing I had the guts to just end it all, to make the hurt go away for good."

"One morning after I had slept in my chair beside the river all night Mother came down to find me. She slapped me and gave me another one of her lectures. That time she said something that hit home. She asked me if I really thought Charlene would want me to sit and crawl into a bottle or die before my time. She asked if I really thought I was honoring her memory by turning into a drunken asshole."

"I didn't quit drinking immediately and it still took me a few weeks to get almost back to the way I was before Charlene died but I clawed my way back. Each day was a little easier but they were all hell on earth. I would catch myself wanting to tell Charlene something and then realize I could never talk to her or touch her or smell her ever again. I cried as I am sure you do and I hurt but I finally moved on."

"I sold my practice in Seattle and decided to move back here. It was almost a year after Charlene's death before I got all the loose ends tied up in Seattle. On my way home I took my time and played the tourist. I met many wonderful people, many of whom are now very good friends of mine and who stop by here from time to time." Charlie smiled a little and continued, "I met Amanda at the Testicle Festival in Rock Springs Wyoming and we spent several days together there. I travelled with her from there back to her family ranch in western Colorado where I spent several more days getting to know her better. We started our first child while I was there. Of course I didn't know that until after I got my head out of my ass and asked her to marry me several weeks later."


Better Days



Jim saw the boy had a stick in his hand and was trying to brain him with it. He smiled to himself. It was so obvious the boy had no combat training. He was holding the stick over his head to bring it down onto Jim. Jim watched and waited, then when the arm came down he grabbed it twisted and began to dislocate it when he heard movement behind him. He twisted, still pulling the boy with him and threw him toward and into Pete.

The boy Jim had thrown screamed and crumpled, falling on top of Pete. By them Sam had ran up and was holding his gun on Pete. Jim stood and looked around then down at the boy he had thrown into Pete. He was lying in a pool of blood and holding his side where a knife was sticking from his body.

Sam was talking into his microphone as Jim looked on. Jim saw Calvin floundering in the mill pond trying to climb out. He ran to the pond and pulled him from it only to see him grabbed and hugged by the young girl. He said, "You two kids go over there and sit down a minute. I'm sure Sam will want to talk to you before we get you home."

Jim returned to Sam and helped him cuff Pete then, after Sam cuffed the man with the dislocated arm he helped with the injured young man. They had just done all the bandaging they could when first a sheriff's deputy, then a highway patrol car drove into the lot. Shortly thereafter an ambulance arrived.

By this time many of the nearby neighbors had began to drift over to see what the excitement was about. Needless to say Jim didn't get any more work done that day. As the officers were taking statements a very pretty woman in her mid to late thirties arrived and ran to Calvin and the young girl. Jim could see the tears running down her cheeks as she hugged the children.

After all the statements were taken the woman came up to Jim and said, "Thank you sir. You saved my son's life or at least saved him from a worse beating than he received. He's a good boy and was trying to protect his sister from that animal. Pete has been trying to...well, he's been after Sarah to go out with him. She's only 14 and I don't want her dating yet, especially with a 19 year old boy. OH! I'm sorry, I'm Cheryl Dotson and these are my children."

Cheryl smiled slightly and pushed her children toward the road and town before she continued speaking. She said, "I need to get the kids home now but...well, thank you again. If I can ever help you just call. I don't know how else I can thank you. I owe you so much but I don't have much money since their father died..."

Jim smiled at the young mother and said, "You don't owe me anything Cheryl. I just did what needed to be done. Hell, anyone would have helped if they'd been here."

Cheryl jerked her head back toward Jim and stared at him then she said heatedly, "NO! No, they wouldn't have. Pete and his friends have most of the people in town buffaloed and I'm pretty sure no one would have stepped in like you did. There have been a couple who crossed swords with Pete and they've been hurt pretty badly in accidents. No one can prove Pete had anything to do with it but they both blamed him for what happened. He pushes and bully's all the younger people in town and some of the older ones. I'm really scared when he gets back out of jail."

Jim continued to run on the roads around town. After they got over the surprise of seeing a grown man running down the street many of the townsfolk would wave and call a greeting when Jim ran by. On one of his runs he found where Calvin and his sister lived. He saw the little girl in the front window and Calvin was sitting on the front porch petting a midsized dog. They waved as Jim passed. From then on when he ran past their house he looked for the children and made a point of waving to them or speaking if they were close enough. They seemed like good kids. He was beginning to wonder what their and their mother's story was.

Over the weeks after the little altercation Jim was a small town celebrity but then things returned mostly to normal. People would now stop him from time to time to visit with him and he was becoming a recognized member of the community. 

Throughout the days following his altercation with Pete and his friends the renovations to the millworks went on well. Jim climbed around, cleaned parts, greased parts, tightened bolts and reinforced the machinery as needed. He had to hire a little help with some welding and breaking loose some of the larger bolts but all in all he did the work himself. He made plans to do a test run of the grinding wheel on the third Saturday of October. During his visits with his neighbors Jim had told a few of the people, including Sam, who had stopped by to visit while he was finishing up the work, when he planned to test the mechanism in the mill.

Jim bought several bushels of corn and wheat from the Stevens farm to use as a test. He had read all he could on the internet about operating the old mill and had even taken a two day trip to visit an old grist mill that was still in operation. When the operators found out he was restoring Wilsons' Mill they gave him some instruction and demonstrated what he needed to do.

The morning he was to actually operate the mill for the first time he was surprised to find a large crowd gathering to watch. There was a festive atmosphere and many of the townsfolk had brought coolers and yard chairs. Almost everyone politely asked if they could stay and watch. Jim was surprised but gracefully allowed them to stay with the understanding they stayed out of the area where the mill machinery was. Traffic and attendance got so heavy that Sam actually called for a deputy sheriff to help with controlling the crowd.

Finally Jim decided everything was ready for his test. He loaded wheat into the hopper on the second floor then returned to the first floor to begin grinding. He moved to the levers and controls. He engaged the waterwheel then opened the water gates to allow water to race down the flume and begin turning the water wheel. Slowly the weight of the water caused the wheel to turn. As it began turning there was a groan, then a grinding sound and the great stone grinding wheels began moving. When they were at speed Jim opened the chute and allowed the wheat to begin flowing down to the grinding wheels.

Those who could see let out a cheer when the wheels started turning then once again they cheered when the first flour poured down the exit chute and fell into a collection container.

After Jim ground two bushels of wheat he stopped the mill, reset the equipment, loaded corn into the hopper and then restarted the machinery to grind some corn meal. Once again the crowd cheered as they watched the freshly ground cornmeal flow into its collection container.

After the two bushels of corn were ground Jim closed the flume, waited for the mill to stop turning then unhitched the waterwheel from the grinding machinery so it could not start up accidentally. He walked outside onto the covered porch to see the crowd. When he exited the building they let out a roar and surged toward him. Jim walked down onto the gravel lot and accepted the congratulations and handshakes of his neighbors, many of whom had already became his friends.

It was almost 4 p.m. before the last person left and Jim could relax. He was so pumped he didn't know what to do and his face almost hurt from the constant smile he had all day. One of the last persons who had been there had been an older man and he invited Jim to go to the Steelville Senior Center for supper and the weekly Senior Center dance. He said, "Jim we all have been talking and seeing as how you're new and don't have a wife...Awww Shit! Jim I'm sorry. I know you lost your wife a while back. What I meant to say was that there's a lot more single women around here than men and we all would like to have ya come over and eat and visit with us."

Jim hadn't promised one way or another but the more he thought about it the more he wanted to go. Mostly he wanted to meet more of the people who lived around his new home but he also didn't feel like cooking that night and the thought of eating there won him over.

When Jim walked into the room at the Senior Center he stopped to look around. He noticed the rapid lessening of the noise as everyone saw a new face enter. Jim immediately felt out of place. He was obviously the youngest person there at 45. Most of the other people looked like they were in their late 50's or older. Jim was looking for some place to sit when he saw a familiar face. Jim and Ann Fielding were at a table to the side of the room. He walked up to say hello then he planned to find another seat. He was still operating on the old, Active Duty Military social rules. You made your manners to the Brass then found another table to sit at as was proper.

As he approached the table Jim Fielding stood and smiled. He reached his hand out to shake and they stood visiting for a moment. Jim began to make his excuses to leave when Jim Fielding looked surprised and said, "Whoa there Hoss. Where the heck do you think you're off to? Ann and I have a couple of empty chairs here. Unless you have someone else waiting on you why don't you just sit with us?"

Jim stood a moment then said, "Yes Sir." He then moved toward one of the free chairs.

After SGM Ross took his seat Jim Fielding sat and leaned on the table. He looked over at Jim and pursed his lips. Finally he said, "Jim I don't want to embarrass you but I think we need to clear the air here. I know what you were trying to do there when you were going to leave. That would have been the proper thing to do if we were still on active duty. We're both retired now and I would like to think we're friends. I'm not a Colonel any longer and you're not a Sergeant Major. Oh, I know we would carry those ranks if we were both called back onto active duty. If we were recalled we would have to observe the proprieties but here and now we're both Jim and this is Ann. I know the boys don't expect you to call them by their rank or to defer to them and I don't either. We all live and work together in the community and are just home folks now. Now if you really don't want to eat with us that's one thing but if you were worried about rank, just drop it. We're both old soldiers. We're neighbors more or less, and I would appreciate it if we could just hang together here." 

Jim smiled and said, "Sure Colonel, uh Jim. I knew that things were more relaxed after you retired. I just wasn't thinking on several levels. I just assumed you had someone coming to join you and I just fell back on old habits. I would be pleased to share your table sir."

"Jim around here, whether we are in the café, the Senior Center or wherever we just sit in an empty chair if we want to visit with or eat with whoever is already at the table. If they have someone coming to join them they let you know or their guest pulls up another table or chair if need be."

After the meal, served buffet style, each person took their plates back to the scullery. A small band walked onto the stage where their instruments were already set up and began to play. Slowly the dance floor filled with couples. Jim sat and watched as Jim and Ann Fielding danced. When they returned to the table Ann smiled at Jim and held out her hand. She pulled him to his feet and let him lead her to the dance floor.

Jim didn't even get to sit down when he took Ann back to the table. A short plump blue haired woman walked up to Jim and took his hand. She tugged him toward the dance floor and as he followed she looked over her shoulder and said, "Hi. I'm Doris. I've seen ya at the café over here in town a time or two haven't I? Joe said he'd invited a new man to come tonight. I wanted to get my claws into you first but I see Ann beat me. A bunch of us here like to dance and these old men get tired out too easily. I hope you can keep it up longer than some of them." She gave Jim a wicked grin when she said that.

Doris pulled Jim up near the stage and turned moving into his arms. As the dance progressed she moved closer and closer to him until she was rubbing her breasts and abdomen against him. When that dance ended Jim started to return to his seat and another woman grabbed him and pulled him onto the dance floor. He had to dance three more dances before the band took a break and he staggered back to his chair.

Jim Fielding and Ann were smiling at him when he returned. He collapsed into his chair and took a large drink from his glass. He leaned back and Jim broke out into a big guffaw. Ann's smile just got larger. Jim Fielding leaned toward Jim and said, "I don't want to be lecturing an old soldier like you Jim but a word to the wise might be in order. Some of the unattached and even a few of the attached ones call this the Meat Market. A lot of these 'Ladies' are piranhas. They latch onto any man they can, especially a new visitor to the dances and won't let him go. "

"From time to time the women here almost come to blows over a particularly good catch in a man. If you are looking to sleep around and don't mind an older woman this is the place to find one. Take Doris for example. She was the first one you danced with in case you forgot. I wouldn't be surprised if she didn't try to get you to go home with her or to come home with you." Jim Fielding blushed and gave a sick smile. He looked over at Ann and she nodded her head yes. He continued talking, "Doris there has even been known to take a man outside in the parking lot and have relations with him. Back when I was divorced I came to a couple of these dances and made the mistake of going home with her. We had sex and I figured out within a couple of weeks that had been a serious error. She showed up at my home one day wanting to move in some of her clothes. We had quite a row when I refused to let her. Additionally, she isn't too particular who she has sex with and never requires protection. She has been known to pass on a disease or two so a word to the wise my friend. A word to the wise."

Jim felt himself becoming more and more shocked as Jim Fielding talked. Hell the women here acted like the sluts in some of the bars outside military posts, they were just older. He leaned back in his chair and stared across the table at the couple. Finally he found his voice and said, "Damn. I never would have believed...Man, that's a lot to think about. They don't care that I would be several years younger than they are? I mean I can see I am probably the youngest man, hell, the youngest person in here by several years. Whooo Hooo."

He was still sitting in shock when Doris trotted up to his side again. She smiled and reached for his hand to pull him back onto the dance floor. Jim looked up at her and resisted her attempts. She frowned and said, "What's the matter Honey? Come on. I want to dance more now."

Jim looked over at the Fieldings and pulled back on Doris. As she stepped toward him he said, "Doris, I'm pretty tired right now. I worked all day and just need to sit and relax a little; would you just sit here with me a moment please?"

Doris frowned and looked at the Fieldings then she sat beside Jim. Jim Fielding turned to Ann and held out his hand. "Honey would you like one more dance before we leave?" Ann smiled and rose to follow her husband onto the dance floor.

After the Fieldings had left Jim turned to Doris. They visited about the town and his mill for a few moments then he said, "Thanks for the dance Doris and for wanting to dance more but I think I need to clear the air with you and some of the other ladies here. I lost my wife less than a year ago and I'm still not comfortable thinking of other women. I enjoyed our dances and if I ever come back here I would be pleased to dance with you again. I am not ready for a relationship though and I don't want you or any of the other ladies to think I am leading them on. I plan to limit myself to one dance an evening with any one lady so nothing can be assumed about my intentions."

Doris sat and looked at him a moment then said, "Well you sanctimonious prick. I heard ya was a retired Army Man. Hell, one of my husbands was in the army and I know how you all are. You'd fuck anything ya could talk into holding still long enough to get your cock into it. What's the matter. You too good for all us old women? Or did that bastard Jim Fielding fill your head full of his crap about me?"

Doris jumped from her chair and turned to walk off. As she was leaving she said vehemently, "Well you can just go to hell Mr. High and Mighty. You'll come crawling back here one of these days and beg us to go with you when you find out there's no young stuff like you're used to."

Jim and Ann returned as Doris was flouncing off. They sat down once more and Jim said, "Well old friend. Sounds like you got about the same speech I got when I told her I didn't want to date her either. She is right about one thing though. There aren't many women your age around here. When you get ready to look again though you will have a couple to choose from or you can go to one of the larger towns. We mostly have very young divorcees or older widows like you see here."

About midnight Jim decided to return to his home and go to bed. When Jim arrived at his truck he started to walk between it and the car parked next to it. He noticed the car was rocking and he heard moaning coming from within. Jim looked into the back seat and saw Doris under one of the men she had been dancing with earlier. She had one leg over the back of the seat and the other over the front seat back. Her hips were thrusting upward as her lovers thrust downward. She was moaning and screaming out her pleasure. Jim stood and watched in surprise as she hit her peak. She strained against her lover and screamed. In the dim light he could see each of the lovers crotches throbbing and pulsating as Doris accepted the spend of her lover. Jim smiled to himself and thought, yep, just like the sluts in the bars around military bases. Sure glad Jim warned me about her.

Jim continued his journey between the vehicles, entered his truck and drove off heading for home and his soft, warm but lonely bed. He slept late the next morning and decided to take the day off. 

Around dusk Jim took his fishing line and decided to see if he could catch some trout from around his mill wheel. He was deeply engrossed in his endeavor when he once again heard young voices nearby. As the voices began to rise he could tell they were taunting someone. 

Jim crawled from the machinery supports and walked around the corner to see Pete's two uninjured friends taunting Calvin once again. Jim yelled at them and told them to get off his property. After they had left Calvin walked up to Jim and thanked him once again for helping him. He stood looking at Jim for a minute then in a trembling voice he asked, "Sir, I been seeing you run around town and I see you here doing exercises some days too. I heard you used to be a soldier and I was wondering...Could you maybe help me. I'm tired of those guys picking on me and Sarah and I thought maybe you could show me how you kept them from hurting you the other day?"

Jim stood looking at the earnest expression on the boys face. He was a well developed lad but he looked soft. Finally he asked, "Why me son? Why don't you ask your Father to do help you with that?"

"I can't do that sir. My Daddy died from Cancer a couple years ago and now it's only Mother and Sarah and me. I could pay if you didn't want too much if that's the problem."

"No, Son. I don't need or want your money. Tell ya what. You get your mother to come down here so we can talk about it and if she says its ok maybe I'll help you a little. I would expect you to work hard and do everything I said though. I wouldn't take any excuses and there might be times you would hate me before we got done. Now why don't you go home and think about this. Talk it over with your mother then if you still want to do that you all need to come down here and we'll see what happens."




Better Days



"Yessir!" Calvin smiled and took off running for home. Jim didn't see or hear from him the rest of the week. He didn't even see him around his house the two times he ran past it. In fact, by Saturday evening he had completely forgotten his talk with Calvin. He had continued to work on his place and was thinking almost exclusively about it.

Jim was on his patio looking over the stream when he heard a car drive up and voices coming from the front of his home. He heard the doorbell and walked around the side of the house to see Calvin, Sarah and their Mother looking in the front window for him. "Can I help you," he asked.

"Oh," Cheryl said as she turned toward Jim. "I'm sorry to bother you but Calvin said you wanted to talk to me about something. I'm sorry I am so late tonight but today, this evening, is the first time I have had free to see you. Is there some problem or something I can help you with Mr. Ross?"

Jim looked at Calvin and he was blushing. He refused to look Jim in the eye. Jim said, "Well, I don't know how to answer that question Mrs. Dotson. What has Calvin told you I said? Maybe we should start from there?"

"Why nothing. He just said you wanted to talk to me about his trouble with Pete..." Cheryl turned to look at Calvin and continued, "Calvin what's going on here? I thought you said Mr. Ross wanted to see me?"

"He does Mom. I just...well I, uhhh. I asked him if he would teach me how to fight and he said he wouldn't unless you and he talked and you told him it was OK. I know how you feel about fighting but...MOM I NEED to know something about it. What if he hadn't been here to help me that time? Those guys might have really hurt Sarah and I need to be able to help her."  

Cheryl turned to look at Jim and she said, "Mr. Ross, I'm sorry we bothered you. I thought you wanted to see me about something important. We'll go now and I'm sorry we bothered you this evening."

Cheryl and two dejected children turned to walk back to their car. Calvin gave Jim a hurt look over his shoulder as they turned. Jim didn't even know he had spoken until he heard the words coming from his mouth. He said, "Wait Mrs. Dotson. I think I'm almost as upset with Calvin as you must be but he does have a point. Would you and the children like to sit on my patio with me for a few minutes while we see what we can do about this?"

Cheryl said, "Thank you, but NO. I don't think that's a good idea."

"But Mom. Think about it. You know Dad was getting ready to teach me to box before he..."

Cheryl and the children had several minutes of conversation then she turned to Jim and said, "Well, I suppose I can stay and visit a few minutes." She looked at Calvin and continued, "But you haven't heard the last of this young man." 

Jim and the Dotson family visited for almost an hour and a half before they came to an understanding. Cheryl agreed to let Jim teach Calvin some basic self defense moves but insisted he not be taught anything more. She had agreed that he needed to be in better physical condition so agreed he could run and exercise with Jim occasionally too. Jim refused to take any pay for his help but did say he would let Calvin do odd jobs for him occasionally as recompense. They outlined a schedule for the first month and all understood if Calvin did not adhere to the schedule Jim would stop helping him.

Jim made it a habit to run from his home to Calvin's where they met to begin Calvin's run. Jim did most of his run before getting to Calvin's home so he could exercise with him after they ran together. Calvin was supposed to do his stretches and warm ups before Jim arrived so they could go immediately to the run. Calvin ran with Jim until he could go no farther then they turned around and ran back to his house at the best pace they could make. Jim didn't like the fact he had to run slower than he normally would when Calvin was with him but that was what it took.

After arriving back at Calvin's home they walked a short distance to cool down then did their stretching exercises once more before doing their exercises. After they had been running together for two weeks Jim noticed Calvin running faster. In fact, coming at the end of his run like it did there were days when Jim was pushing to keep up with Calvin. They began to run a circular route instead of out and back.

During cool down in the middle of the third week of running Jim said, "Calvin you're picking up the pace and running much better than I expected. I'm surprised you are doing so well. I keep increasing the distance and you stick right with me. How much time do you have for our exercises? Do I need to stop increasing your distance or how do we handle that?"

Calvin smiled and replied, "Mom says I can have all the time I need as long as I get all my chores done. We will either have to start earlier or cut down pretty quickly though because I am running close on getting ready for school now. I guess I could run alone in the evenings and we could just do the exercises in the mornings if you wanted to. I'm glad I'm picking up the running this fast. I guess I hadn't lost as much wind and muscle as we thought."

"What do you mean Calvin?"

"Oh, I used to run cross country but stopped when Dad died. It's only been a little over a year so I guess I kept some of my capability. I never did much exercise though and the pushups, sit ups and so forth are still hurting quite a lot. Wish I could do more of the exercises but I guess that will come with time and practice."

Jim and Calvin decided they would just exercise in the mornings together and Calvin would run evenings alone. He was going to try for the cross country team again at school and that would take care of the running when the team started practicing. They would run together weekends but that was all. Many times when Jim and Calvin were exercising at Jim's home Calvin's Sister Sarah would come with him. Jim had no problem with that and soon found he was helping her exercise and use his weight machines also. For some reason he felt good about helping the children and missed them the few days they didn't come over.

In early December Jim and Calvin had made their run and were back at Calvin's home doing their stretches and cool down when Pete and his three friends drove up. They jumped out of the car and the four boys surrounded Jim and Calvin. They began pushing and were trying to catch and hold the two friends. Jim was able to resist the two who were after him and was getting in some good punches but Calvin was held by the third boy. Pete walked up to Jim and snarled, "Damn you, you old Bastard. I owned this town until you showed up and I'm going to own it again. We have our court date next week and I'm tired of fucking with you. You need to go do whatever you have to old man because I want those charges dismissed. If this shit keeps up someone's going to get hurt. Understand me?"

"How would you like it if little Callie boy here or maybe Sarah had an accident? You get us off old man or that is sure going to happen." By this time the two boys had managed to grab Jim's arms and were holding him. Pete walked up in front of him and hit Jim in the stomach with his fist. Jim managed to clench his muscles enough to absorb some of the blow. He folded partly over and Pete stepped back grinning.

"That hurt old man? Well you better get used to it because we're going to give you a little taste this morning so you know what's waiting on you and these damn Dotson's if you don't make things right for us."

Pete stepped toward Jim once more and Jim acted. He lunged back and bent at the waist slightly kicking his right foot upward. His foot connected with Pete's chin and Pete's head slammed back. Pete fell like a pole axed steer and Jim's momentum caused the boys holding him to fall backward. As they fell they lost hold on Jim. As they were falling they heard the sound of sirens drawing up beside the yard. The two boys on the street were rising when the one holding Calvin let him go and said, "Quick guys get up and let's get out of here!" They turned to Pete and he was still lying where he had fallen.

Jim looked toward the siren and saw Sam getting out of the city patrol car. Sam said, "All right. Everyone stay still. What's going on here anyway?"

The boy that had been holding Calvin saw Pete laying still and turned to Jim. He said, "You Bastard. He's going to beat your ass to a pulp when he wakes up." He looked at his friends and said, "Come on let's get Pete in the car and get out of here."

Sam yelled out again, "I said don't move. You three get on the ground on your stomach and stretch your arms and legs out. MOVE NOW!"

Once again the boy who had been holding Calvin spoke. He said, "Fuck You Sam. We're out of here and you damn well better not try to stop us if you know what's good for you."

About that time another patrol car came from the opposite direction and a deputy sheriff got out of it. By that time Sam had his weapon pulled and said, "This is your last warning. Now GET ON YOUR STOMACH AND SPREAD THEM!"

About that time the two boys trying to move Pete dropped him and stood back. One of them looked frightened and said, "I think Pete's dead." He turned to Jim and said, "You asshole. You killed Pete. There aint a hole deep enough for you to hide in and be safe now fuckhead." He started for Jim and the deputy caught him and threw him to the ground. Before he could resist he found himself handcuffed. The deputy and Sam quickly subdued the other two young men before turning to Jim and Calvin.

By this time Cheryl and Sarah had exited the house and were hugging Calvin. After she had determined Calvin was OK Cheryl moved to Jim and hugged him. She looked at him and asked, "I saw them holding and hitting you so I called the police. Are you OK Mr. Ross? I have to thank you again for helping Calvin don't I?"

The deputy sheriff checked on Pete and stood, turning to look at Jim as he did so. "The Kid's right. This one's dead. What happened here?"

Sam spoke up and said, "When I arrived two of the boys were holding Jim here and Pete was beating him. As Pete stepped toward Jim, Jim kicked upward and got him under the chin with his foot. Pete collapsed and Jim and the two guys holding him fell backward. They were just getting up when you arrived."

By now there was quite a crowd standing around. Sam and the deputy were asking the onlookers to step back when an ambulance and Highway Patrol car arrived. It was two hours before all the statements were taken and Pete and his friends had been transported. Jim was allowed to return home but was told, naturally, not to leave the area. The autopsy done on Pete showed he died instantly of a broken neck.

Jim and Calvin continued to run and exercise. Calvin was beginning to put on muscle and his running had improved so Jim was hard pressed to keep up with him. They were now running five miles a day and loving it. Surprisingly, somehow, Sarah had managed to insinuate herself into the daily routine too. She did not run as far as did Calvin but each day she did more. She tried hard and followed Jim's instructions minutely both during the warm up and cool off as well as during the run. She exercised and did the weights correctly also and was showing vast improvement.

After his sessions with the children during the day Jim continued working on his property. From time to time he would grind some flour or meal for neighbors. As people discovered the mill working they would stop to watch. From time to time they asked if they could purchase some of the stone ground flour and meal. On non school days or sometimes in the evenings he would look up and see either Calvin or Sarah or both. Many times they were working, doing odd jobs for him without his requesting they do so. He would chide them about that but they would just look embarrassed and blow off his comments or suggestions they go play or study. One day Sarah said, "But Mr. Ross, we LIKE to be with you and help you. It is sooo cool to watch the mill working and to package the corn meal or flour. Besides, you need the help. You take a lot of your time to exercise with us we feel like we need to do something to help you."

Jim decided since he was grinding grain for his neighbors from time to time he would take a page out of the old miller's book and do it for a share. He went back to the accepted share of years past and kept half of what he ground as compensation for his work. After the meal and flour was ground he bagged it as he did the grain he purchased and ground. All the meal and flour was placed in one pound or five pound bags and set out for resale.

Jim had built shelves for the front room of the mill side of the building for display of his meal and flour. This had been the retail store part of the building during its time as a feed mill and farm store. He didn't sell much at first but as the weeks went by that winter more and more product was sold. He began having phone calls wanting to know if he shipped.

Jim was talking to a few of his friends that came down for coffee with him one morning when he began complaining about how much time it took him to grind and sell the meal and flour. One of the men said, "Are you making any money out of the deal Jim?"

"Yeah, I'm not getting rich but I do make something. I sure as hell wouldn't do it for free!"

"Well, I know you sort have adopted the Dotson kids. I've seen them helping ya some and I know you let them exercise with you. Why don't you see if maybe Cheryl wants a little part time job helping with things? I know she wants to find a job but so far all she can find is full time work in Centerton. She told my wife she didn't want to be away from her kids that long. She'd have to leave here about six in the morning and wouldn't get home until nearly 630 at night. She doesn't feel they are old enough to be alone that long before and after school. Paying someone to watch them then buying the gas and so forth to get to work would take a big chunk of her pay."

"Maybe if you could pay her just a little to help you it would be a good thing for both of you. The price of gas and child care now days I bet she would spend half of her pay just to be able to work. This could be just what she needs to make things a little easier for her. I know she has to pinch pennies to get by on just her and the kids Social Security."

"Huh. I hadn't thought of anything like that. I don't need much help most days. You really think she'd be interested in something like that?"

"Hell, I don't know. All ya can do is ask."

Jim thought about his predicament for a couple of days and couldn't decide what he wanted to do. On one hand, he needed something to keep himself busy after he finished getting his building and the dam up to snuff. On the other hand, did he really want to become a miller? He liked most of the people in the small town and his place was rapidly becoming a local hang out. Hell, he had to start accepting donations for coffee because it got so expensive to furnish it for everyone who dropped in to visit. He had bought a couple of small dinette sets at a rummage sale to set up in the mill store for guests to use. He had even brought an older easy chair out to the store for himself and had installed a small TV.

Now people who came down started suggesting he get some soft drinks and snacks so they could have them available when they dropped by. If he was gone for some reason the next day he heard about how disappointed his neighbors were that they had no place to loaf. Finally he decided to talk to Cheryl and see what she thought about things.

The next morning after exercising with Calvin Jim asked if he might come in for a drink of water. Cheryl was in the kitchen preparing the breakfast for the children and drinking her morning coffee. After Jim had his water she offered him a cup of coffee. He smiled and took it. He made sure to drink it slowly as he and Cheryl exchanged small talk and watched the children eat their breakfast. Finally the children finished breakfast and ran outside to catch the school bus. Cheryl was watching Jim with a thoughtful look on her face. He could tell she was wondering why he was hanging around. It wasn't like him to do that. In fact, he rarely even came into the house at all.

Finally Jim finished the last swallow of his coffee and leaned back in his chair. His army experience tended to make him gruff, businesslike and to the point. He looked at Cheryl and began speaking. He said, "Cheryl I can see you are wondering why I am hanging around like I am this morning. I've been thinking about some things for the last several days and I need to talk to you about some of them."

Jim noticed a worried look come over Cheryl's face and he slightly raised his hand in a halting motion. He continued talking. He said, "Oh, don't worry. It's nothing bad I don't think. Well, at least I don't think it's anything you have to worry about anyway."

Jim explained how his milling was taking off and how he was having several locals drop in to drink coffee. He talked about how he was getting orders for his goods requesting he ship them and about how people were starting to come to town just to visit his mill. He explained how he was almost busy enough he would not be able to do everything that needed to be done. 

Jim looked at Cheryl as she sat listening to him and continued, "Joel was drinking coffee with me the other day when I told him about my problem. He almost immediately came up with a suggestion that might help me. He told me you had been looking for part time work and couldn't find anything that would work for you and your kids. He suggested I ask you if you would like to work for me part time at the mill. I can't afford to pay much more than minimum wage and I don't know how many hours we could find you but I guess it would be at least 20 hours a week. If the business grows it could even be more. Would you be interested in something like that?"

Cheryl sat in shock. She had been afraid Jim was going to ask her out or something and she had no idea how to handle that. It had only been eighteen months since her husband, the love of her life, had died and she wasn't ready for another man to come into her life. She had been worrying how to let Jim down easily and now she didn't know what to say. She was having trouble even making her mouth say anything much less anything that would even sound sensible.

Finally Cheryl forced herself to speak. She said, "I don't know what to say Jim. I just never thought about finding a job here in town. Joel is right. I have been looking for work but...I just never thought about something like this. What would I have to do? What would the hours be?"

Jim and Cheryl discussed the job for several minutes trying to work out just what he needed and what she would be able and willing to do. He told her he would want help shipping and packing his product, help around the mill in general, and perhaps even a gofer from time to time. He promised her he would never ask her to do something too heavy or dangerous for her. Finally they agreed to think about the offer more and then talk again. Maybe by then he would know more what he really needed and she would know whether or not she wanted to try something like that.

The Saturday after Jim had asked Cheryl about working for him he was working as fast as he could go. Water mills necessarily run slower than do the modern commercial mills so even with his large wheels he didn't put out too much product per hour. He was getting a reputation for providing good product and his orders were increasing rapidly. This morning he had three hundred pounds of corn meal and a hundred pounds of flour to grind, package and ship. This was a small order for a large modern mill but for him it was a large one. Jim also wanted to produce a little extra of each product to put on his store shelves. He had decided to give Cheryl a week to decide what she wanted to do about helping him and now was sorry he had done so. He really needed some help here today. Oh, well, if it all worked out he would have Cheryl's answer next Tuesday.




Better Days



Jim was using a small hopper upstairs to load the grain into so he had to climb the stairs many times just to do such a small batch of grain. One of his next projects was to rebuild the larger grain hoppers and flumes so he didn't have to load them so often. Jim was upstairs once again loading grain into the hopper when he heard the buzzer for the front door go off. He hurriedly finished filling the hopper and was heading for the stairs to see what his latest visitor wanted when he heard Cheryl's voice, "Jim. Are you in here?"

Jim went down the stairs as rapidly as he could and emerged from the stairwell smiling. He said, "Yeah Cheryl I'm here. I had to go upstairs for a moment to put more grain in the hopper so I could grind on. What can I help you with this morning?"

"Jim I've been thinking about our talk the other day and I thought maybe if you didn't mind I could come down today and watch. I want to see what you do and see if I am interested in the work and if I think I can do it. Would that be OK?"

"Sure Cheryl. You picked a good day or maybe a bad day for it. I'm busy as a one armed wallpaper hanger today. If you want, just sort of follow me around and watch. Feel free to ask questions if you have them."

For the next hour or so Cheryl stuck to Jim like glue. She had a light coating of powder on her from the dust floating in the air. She had picked that up watching Jim mill the grain, load the hopper and package the ground product. Finally it was noon and Jim closed off the spillway to stop the waterwheel from turning and then disengaged the mill wheel. Cheryl watched as Jim walked to the front door and locked it.

Jim looked at Cheryl and smiled. He said, "Lunch time. Do you want to eat a bite with me while we talk about this now or do you have something else you have to do?"

Cheryl smiled and said, "No, I have the day free. The kids are with their grandparents and all I have to do is sit in the house."

"Great. Come on into my house and we'll see what we can find to eat. I was just going to have soup and a sandwich. Will that be OK for you?"

"Oh, I couldn't eat your food. I'll just run back home and find something there. We can talk when I get back."

"No Cheryl. I feel like I owe you something for your time this morning. You were a great help packing the meal for me and I really appreciate it. Besides it will be nice to have someone to eat with for a change. My day has gone very well thanks to your help. At this rate I'll be finished in another hour or so and I had expected to work until late this afternoon."

As they prepared and ate their lunch they discussed the job. Cheryl hadn't seen anything she couldn't do and said so. She did say she would rather not run the mill but she was willing to do anything else if Jim wanted to hire her. Jim smiled and said, "Great. I'm happy with what I've seen you do this morning. Consider yourself hired."

Jim and Cheryl discussed hours and work days. They finally decided she would work from eight to noon six days a week and would be on call for extra time if an emergency came up. Cheryl's first official work day would be the following Monday.

Cheryl had been working for Jim a week when he got a phone call from the Prosecuting Attorney. He was informed he was not going to be prosecuted for killing Pete, it had been ruled justifiable Homicide as he was acting in self defense and in defense of Calvin. Jim was also informed he would be called on to testify if and when the other three young men came to trial. Cheryl had taken the call and was watching Jim with a worried expression. After he told her the outcome of the conversation he could see the tension leave her body. She said, "Good Jim. I'm so happy for you. I was worried that you would go to prison for protecting Calvin." Cheryl looked guilty for a moment then continued, "Oh, I didn't mean it was good Pete was killed, just that it was good you weren't in trouble!"

Over the next two weeks Cheryl and Jim settled into a good routine. She was very helpful and he managed to get a lot more done in a shorter period of time. He still had a lot of folks drop in for coffee and he enjoyed talking to them. From time to time even Cheryl stopped for a quick cup with some of her neighbors. She listened to them complain about not having snacks or sodas and not having anywhere local to buy a few emergency grocery items. Almost daily she had a thoughtful look on her face.

One day after she had clocked out for the day she sat down at a table and said, "Jim can I talk to you for a few minutes please? I've been thinking about what some of the guys have been saying about things and I have some ideas."

Jim sat at the table with her and began drinking a fresh cup of coffee. He thought the coffee sure got better after she started making it. He leaned back and watched Cheryl. She looked nervous but determined.

"Jim I've been thinking about the snacks and things the guys are ribbing you about. You know my husband used to tell me I was a pretty good cook and I got to thinking if we could use your store here and your flour I could bake some cinnamon rolls and bread and stuff to bring down here. Maybe we could sell them and increase your take. I wouldn't mind doing that and it would be nice to have a few things like that to sell..."

Jim thought about that for a few minutes and then said, "Well Cheryl I just don't know. I don't have a health certificate and don't know how that would be looked at. Would I need a license? I had to get a business license and tax number to sell the flour and meal. I don't know if that would cover baked goods or not. I also need to know what you expect to get out of that too."

"Oh, I don't want anything. I'll just make it while I'm messing around home and bring it down when I come in the mornings."

"No, that won't work. If you do extra work you would need extra pay. I don't want to pay you for more hours though. Tell you what. What if we sell the things and deduct the cost of ingredients then split the remainder fifty fifty? That seems fair. We could try it for a month then if it didn't work we could just stop."

Jim and Cheryl discussed the new enterprise a little longer then she took a bag of flour home to make her first batch of rolls and bread. Cheryl showed up at the store a half hour early the next morning looking flushed but excited. Her eyes were sparkling. By now Jim had given her a key and the first he knew she was there was when he heard a banging going on from the store. He opened the door between it and his living room to see Cheryl moving a display case. He watched as she placed wonderful smelling cinnamon rolls, half a dozen loaves of fresh homemade bread and some dinner rolls on the shelves. She even had a small ice chest with milk and Orange Juice and a few sodas inside.

After Cheryl had things set up to her satisfaction she stood back beside Jim and smiled. "There," she said. "Now we'll see if I'm right and things sell."

Jim walked up to the display and sniffed. He reached out and felt the heat coming off the pan of cinnamon rolls. Jim turned to look at Cheryl and said, "Hey, these are hot. Did you bake them this morning?" Cheryl blushed and nodded her head yes. Jim continued, "I thought you were going to do the baking yesterday afternoon? My God, how early did you have to get up to do this?"

Cheryl blushed a little more and almost whispered, "About four."

Jim looked at her and said, "Cheryl that doesn't seem right. I'm not sure I like the fact you got up to work like this that early. I thought we had an understanding"

Cheryl broke in on him and said, "Oh, Hush! I had to spend the same amount of time either way and we both know fresh hot baked goods are better than ones that have cooled off. Besides, I usually get up around six so I didn't lose much sleep."

Cheryl got busy making the first pot of coffee then after it was done she brought Jim a cup of coffee and a fresh cinnamon roll. She sat with him and had a cup and roll also. They were still nibbling on their roll and drinking coffee when one of Jim's regular visitors showed up. When he came in the door his head came up and he stopped in his tracks. His eyes moved to the table then over to the shelf with the fresh baked goods on it. He looked at the posted prices and his eyes lit up. He broke out with a big grin and made a bee line for the baked goods.

Joel walked to the shelf, picked up a disposable cup for his coffee, a disposable plate for a roll and loaded both down. He had already noticed the donation cup for coffee had disappeared and in its place was a sign listing coffee prices as well as the price for the baked goods.

Joel sat at the table with Jim and Cheryl. He took a bite of his roll then closed his eyes in bliss. He sighed and said, "Damn that's good." He looked at Jim then Cheryl before asking, "Did ya cook these Cheryl?"

Cheryl blushed and nodded her head yes. Joel laughed and said, "Well, they're darn good woman. I bet they won't last long. Ya gonna keep on making 'em?"

Jim spoke up saying, "We don't know Joel. Depends on whether or not they sell well and we can make anything on them. Of course it also depends on the state and how many hoops I have to jump through for them."

After he and Joel visited for a few Jim rose and began his mornings work. On one trip through the sales room he heard Joel on the phone. "No Shit, Jim and Cheryl got some baked goods out now. I just had one of tha best cinnamon rolls I've ever had. They even got fresh homemade bread and rolls too."

By nine a.m. the word had spread over town and they were sold out of rolls and bread. Cheryl's eyes were glowing when she reported to Jim. She said their profits were almost $44.00 that day on ten loaves of bread, two dozen cinnamon rolls and a dozen dinner rolls.

For the rest of the week Cheryl continued to bake in the morning and each day she increased her offerings. Almost every day they sold out before the end of the day. Finally on Friday she and Jim sat talking after they had closed at noon. Cheryl said, "Jim I'm sorry. I think I've reached the end of my string. I'm having to get up now at 3 a.m. and I just can't bake any more but I know we can sell it if I could. I just don't know what to do."

Jim sat for a moment then he said, "Well, Cheryl. First off getting up at three is pure bullshit. I won't have that. A few dollars isn't worth that to me and if you need the money that bad we need to think about how to get it for you without you losing that much sleep."

Cheryl looked shocked for a moment then she said, "Oh! I'd be lying if I said the money wasn't helping but that isn't the whole story. I love doing this. For the first time in my life...well for the first time since David died I'm having fun again and I owe it all to you. Please don't make me stop!"

Jim sat thinking. He admitted their profits were looking up and it was fun but he didn't need the money that badly. Finally he had a thought and he smiled. He looked up at Cheryl and said, "Well, how about this? You get your first batch of stuff cooked then bring it and your dough over here and cook more in my oven. That way you can cook while we work here and won't have to get up as early. In fact you can even begin sleeping later again. If you promise to do that I will go along with making what we are now. The licenses weren't too hard to get but I sure would hate to waste them now that we have them..."

One day Jim was in Centerton buying supplies when he drove past a restaurant supply house. He had a brilliant idea and drove back to the store. When he came back out he was over five thousand dollars poorer but he had a smile on his face and a bounce in his step. He finished his shopping and returned to Wilsons Mill.

When Cheryl saw him come into the store he was still smiling. She smiled when she saw him and walked up to him. "What's up Jim? I haven't seen you smile like this ever I don't think."

"Oh, nothing. Just had a good day for a change and was remembering a couple of good times I had in the past. How about helping me unload a bunch of stuff then you need to get on home. It's almost noon and your quitting time."

As they were beginning to unload Cheryl's children came into the store. It was a Friday and they only had a half day of school. They had received permission to get off the bus at the mill instead of riding it home and waiting for their mother to get back. After greeting the children Cheryl sent them to one of the tables to begin their homework while she and Jim resumed unloading his truck.

After they had brought all the purchases inside Cheryl looked at the stack of dry goods then turned to Jim. She said, "Jim there seems to be a lot more here than I had put on the list. In fact, it looks like you bought almost twice what I listed. Why did you buy so much?"

"Well, I was looking at the list and the prices on the individual items. I noticed Sams Wholesale Club sold many of the items on your list cheaper if I bought them in case lots. It looked to me like most of it would not spoil if we didn't use them rapidly so I just increased your quantity to take advantage of the cheaper case lot prices. We have plenty of room to store things here so why not? Besides, maybe now I won't have to go to town as often."

Cheryl and Jim were rearranging display shelves and putting his purchases up when Calvin called out to his mother. He said, "Mom, I don't understand this. Can you come over and help me for a minute?"

"Oh, not now Calvin. I'm working. Can't you wait until we get home? I can't take time to help you now, I'm on the clock."

Jim looked over at Cheryl and said, "Oh, go Cheryl. Take a few minutes if you need to and help Calvin. I don't mind."

"No. If he needs help I can do it at home. We will have plenty of time there after work." She looked at Calvin and continued, "Calvin why don't you just put that away and work on something else until I have time to help. I shouldn't be more than an hour longer here."

Jim walked past Calvin's chair and saw he was working on math. He glanced at Cheryl then pulled out a chair beside Calvin. He said, "Maybe I can help a little Calvin. Since I'm not being paid by the hour maybe the boss won't get upset at me if I take a minute or two. What's the problem here?"

Calvin explained the problems and Jim pulled the book between them. Like many children Calvin was having trouble setting up word problems. Jim turned back to the beginning of the section Calvin was working on and began explaining the idea behind the lesson. When he had covered the section he read the first problem Calvin was having trouble with and began asking Calvin questions about it. They talked about the problem and Jim showed Calvin how to write down what the problem gave him to work with and how to write down what they wanted him to figure out. Then Jim had Calvin set up the equation and when he had trouble he showed him how to do that.

After about five problems something Jim said seemed to make sense to Calvin and he got a big grin on his face and set up and solved the remaining four problems in the assignment all by himself. Jim was smiling and laughing with Calvin as he crowed about how easy the work was.

All at once Jim looked up and saw Cheryl was sitting across the table by them and staring at Jim. He looked at the clock on the wall and saw they had been working for over two hours. He had never noticed the time going by. Cheryl looked at Jim when he raised her head and said, "I can't believe it! You were so intense you never even heard me talking to you did you? And you made that look so easy! I've tried to help him with his math before and I just can't get it. I do better than Calvin does but I still can't do some of the problems. You were wonderful. Thank you so much."

"Yeah, thank you Mr. Ross. I really appreciate it. You're so good to us. Sometimes I wish..." Calvin stopped talking and looked first at his sister. She had a cloudy look on her face.

Calvin began putting his books back in his backpack. His mother said, "What Calvin. What do you wish? You know it's not polite to begin a sentence then just leave it hanging."

"Oh, nothing Mom. I just had a stupid thought. I need to do more thinking and I want to try to figure this one out on my own if I can. I'm sorry."

Cheryl stood and said, "Well, come on you two. You've bothered Jim too long this afternoon. Now we need to get home and take care of our chores before bedtime."

Jim smiled and watched them leave. He shook his head in surprise when he heard Sarah lambasting Calvin as they followed their mother across the loading dock and parking lot toward where she parked her car. He thought he heard her angrily whisper, "Calvin you dummy. You almost ruined it all. Why can't you keep your mouth closed?"

That afternoon after Cheryl and the children left Jim began remodeling his store front. He had plenty of room because the store was sixty by thirty feet and they only had the two tables and three shelves in it for displaying their small amount of baked goods, coffee and milled items. Jim moved the flour and corn meal shelves to the far end of the room, placed the coffee and bread display in the center of the room and moved the tables to the center also. After he did that he measured out from the wall separating the store from his living quarters fifteen feet and built a wall with a thirty inch counter top like a breakfast bar in his home. He left a large opening on the inside side of the bar and a smaller one near the front of the store.

After the wall was built and counter top installed Jim began wiring outlets for 110 and 220 volts along the wall separating his living quarters from the store and the stem wall the counter was on. It was ten thirty that evening before he finished but he was happy. The last thing he did was move in four bar stools to place on the store side of the counter.

When Cheryl arrived the next morning she stopped in surprise just inside the door. She looked around then turned to a grinning Jim. "My Gosh. Why did you do all this? You must have worked all night to get this done. What are you going to do with the area behind the counter?"

"Oh, I just thought we needed more work area. We'll put some tables and stuff over there and we can work there instead of in the back."

About 9 a.m. a large white delivery truck drove into the parking lot and backed up to the loading dock that ran the length of the front of the building. The driver and his helper came into the building and Jim met them. Jim took them into the space he had built and showed them the area. The two men were nodding their heads and talking quietly. They then went back outside and opened the truck doors. Jim stood back and smiled while watching Cheryl.

Cheryl stood watching the men with a puzzled look on her face then she gasped and held her hands to her mouth. She just stood and watched in silence as the men brought in a commercial range, oven, small commercial cooler and several feet of stainless steel work tables. They even brought in several commercial stainless bowls and baking pans as well as a large commercial mixer and a pastry display case that was placed at one end of the small lunch counter. Everything had obviously been used before but it was in great shape.

After everything was in the building the men got busy installing the items. In three hours an entire small café kitchen was set up in the newly remodeled end of the room. The two men had even waited while Jim hooked up the gas stove to an existing propane line so they could show Cheryl how to operate everything. Jim shook their hands and thanked them for their rapid and efficient delivery and installation. When he turned back to the store he found Cheryl sitting at one of the tables staring at the new kitchen and crying.

Jim walked up and stood looking down at her. Without thinking he put his hands on her shoulders. Cheryl looked up at him then jumped to her feet and threw her arms around him. Before he could react she gave him a nice kiss and stepped back. "OH, thank you! It's just perfect! But you shouldn't have... A stove, TWO ovens, work tables and deep sinks and the cooler too! Oh, I just don't know what to do..."