The Neighbors

Chapter 10

After that, Harry and Charlie spent a lot of time in our pool. I even gave them the gate code and told them how to disarm the pool alarm so they could swim if I wasn't home. But when I was home, they usually asked if they could take the girls swimming which was always a nice break for me. I trusted them, but I always sat outside and watched anyway, reading a book or catching up on emails, just to be safe. I knew I could never be too careful with my girls in the pool.

Oddly, after my conversation with Harold, I saw even less of him. He did say that he would be working long hours once his project got underway, so I assumed that's what had happened. However, it was too easy for me to notice that he often brought different women home. I didn't even want to think about why he was bringing them to his house or what they were doing, but I could use my imagination and I didn't like where it took me.

I also noticed that Harry and Charlie went running every day. I used to run all the time, but obviously, it had gotten a little more difficult with three small children, not to mention three pregnancies. I was seriously out of shape and knew I'd have to do something about it.

I asked the boys if they would mind if I tagged along on some of their runs. I noticed they usually went around the time I got home from work, so my mom agreed to stay and watch the kids long enough for me to get a quick workout.

The first time we ran, I took Rachael with us because she was crabby and wanted to be near me. I knew she'd probably fall asleep in the jogging stroller, and the boys didn't mind. However, about ten minutes into the run, I was struggling just to keep up due to my lack of fitness and because of the cumbersome stroller. It didn't make a difference that the stroller was designed for running; it was just hard to push and run at the same time.

Harry and Charlie were good sports about it, but finally Charlie offered to push it for me, which I gratefully allowed him to do. I told them they could go on ahead of me because I didn't want to slow them down anymore, but they stuck with me.

When we arrived back home, I thanked Charlie profusely and then apologized for slowing them down. “I won't go with you again. I'm really sorry.”

“Nonsense,” Charlie said. “Pushing this thing is hard work.” He then lifted up the bottom hem of his shirt to wipe his face and I got a gratuitous look at his six-pack. My eyes probably lingered a little too long, but then I looked away, not wanting to incriminate myself. So what if these boys were younger than me? I couldn't help but notice that they were both extremely fit.

“Well, thanks again. I'll be glad to get some exercise in before the snow flies.”

“Do you get a lot of snow here?” Harry asked.

I laughed, but then I said, “I'm sorry, but I just assumed that everyone knew about Minnesota. Let me just tell you that you should definitely invest in a snow blower and a few shovels! Oh, and some sidewalk salt.”

“Fabulous,” Charlie said sarcastically.

But Harry seemed a little excited about the prospect of snow. “So where exactly would one buy a snow blower?” He asked. I didn't know if he knew what I was talking about, but I didn't want to insult him by asking.

“Menards, definitely. How about if you come with me the next time I go, okay?” I asked.

“Sure thing.”

I ran often with Harry and Charlie over the next few weeks. It felt wonderful to start getting back in shape.

One afternoon, as we were cooling down, I asked, “Does your dad run, too?”

Charlie and Harry both laughed out loud.

"What?" I asked in surprise. "He had dinner with us a lot when he first moved here, and he said he'd have to find a gym."