Delicious

The diet of a person can speak directly to a someone's lifestyle. It can say a lot about their personality, preferences and childhood. For example, a person who grows up eating chicken nuggets, will typically enjoy the occasional chicken nuggets snack or meal. Same is to say of activities. If a child enjoyed hunting as a child, whether it be alone or with a friend or family member… they will most likely enjoy the activity as an adult as well. Tyler Conway was no exception.

Tyler showed up in Narrow Valley without warning. For a small town, that was incredibly unusual. Narrow wasn’t somewhere you just moved to because you felt like it. No. Narrow was the kind of place you moved to if you were following a loved one or was offered a job as the town doctor. Neither of these applied to Tyler, however. He just showed up one day.

Tyler was by anyone’s standards an attractive man. He had dark amber hair slicked back with just the right amount of gel. His eyes were dark and sharp. When he looked at you, your eyes had no choice but to become entranced and engaged. They were intoxicating. Actually, everything about him was intoxicating. Making friends wasn’t a problem for him. The third day in town he hit up the local bar and started conversation with the young man at one of the tables in the back. Both being in their mid-thirties, it seemed like the safest route for Tyler to take as he started his new life there. They talked for an hour or so about little things like where they were originally from and what they do for a living.

“I’m in sales” Tyler told him.

“Mostly real estate in my past, but I’m looking for something new. It just wasn’t doing it for me.”

Mathew nodded in agreement.

“I hear that. I’ve actually been working as a teacher at the school for the past few years and every now and then I wish I could branch out and do something else. But it’s not a bad job and I like my students.”

Tyler looked around the room as if considering something. After a moment, he turned to Mathew and asked if he knew the owner at the bar and if perhaps, he needed any help.

“That’s actually not a bad idea” Mathew agreed.

“Let me go talk to Will, he’s the owner” with this he stood up and disappeared into the crowd of people that had accumulated now that the workday was over.

Tyler looked around the room and got a feel for the kinds of people he would now call his neighbors. Right off the bat he pegged the larger man in the back as the high school football coach. He wore a hat that said Rams and Tyler remembered seeing a picture of a ram next to the high school sign, so that would make sense. The woman hanging on his arm was most likely the mother of one of the stars. She wasn’t married, at least not anymore. There was a tan line on her ring finger, and her chest was hanging out a little too much.

Observations like this were made about two or three more people before Mathew returned with a paper application.

“Well Will said he was definitely in need of help now that Barbara is on maternity leave. If you want to fill this out and bring it up to the bar, he said he can interview you tonight.”

Tyler did just this and started working in the bar the next night.

Working at the bar gave Tyler just the insight into people’s lives that he was looking for. He learned their allergies, habits, families, health issues and hobbies. This was very useful to him, because he wouldn’t want to get involved with the wrong type of people.

Three months felt like an eternity as he got a feel for the land. The usuals knew him, and everyone else knew the usuals. So, they were no good. The random stress drinkers would come around and he definitely saw potential there, but stress is really hard on the body and people don’t realize how much it can spoil you. It seemed as if he was never going to find the right fit, but then in walked Laura.

Laura was a blonde haired, blue eyed doe with thick legs and a muscular torso. Her stride was long, and her face was thin. When she walked through the bar door, there wasn’t a single pair of eyes that didn’t glance her way. Though they all shied away when she looked around the midday crowd. Pulling a pink travel bag behind her, she strode right up to the bar and smiled at Tyler with perfect white teeth. She was too good to be true. Tyler couldn’t have picked a better number if he had a herd to choose from. He smiled at her and directed her to the inn run by a sweet couple across town. She had begun to ask for a pen and paper to get directions, but Tyler wasn’t a rookie. He stepped in and offered to walk her on his lunch break and poured her a light beer. He figured she was the type to drink a vodka cranberry, but he wanted to see just how submissive she was. She accepted the beer with a smile and sipped on it slowly, clearly not enjoying the taste, but too polite to say anything.

They chatted while he cleaned the bar and tended to the people as they trickled in on their lunch breaks, and when he was feeling confident enough with the trust he had built, he leaned in and took a sip of her beer. At first, she was surprised and hesitant, but then she sipped from the glass again and he knew he was good to go.

When the lunch rush was done, he hollered to Will that he was going to take his lunch break and walked with Laura to the inn. While they walked, they chatted about where she came from, where she was going and why she had left. Tyler was pleased to hear that she was an only child estranged from her parents and had decided to leave her hometown for Hollywood to become an actress. He congratulated her on her bravery and said that she would make a great actress.

“I know right?” she chimed with a skip in her step.

When they approached the inn, Tyler took her hand and kissed it.

“I’ve had a lovely time talking with you. Would you like to get dinner before you leave town?”

Her face flushed and he could tell that the kiss on the hand was too much. He silently kicked himself, hoping he hadn’t startled her off. Much to his delight, however, she agreed. They set dinner up for the following evening and she said that she would stop at his place on her way to the bus station.

“This could not be any more perfect” he thought to himself. There was a bit more power in his step on his way back to the bar.

“Perfect” he repeated in his head.

The next day flew by. Tyler’s mind was filled with planning and grocery shopping. Cleaning his apartment and prepping the kitchen. He was trying not to let his excitement completely rule him, because there was always the chance of her bailing. But at this point, he was feeling confident and basking in the excitement was good for his appetite. The recipe he picked was going to be perfect, and he decided that he wasn’t going to eat anything the whole day in anticipation.

The time had come. He heard the knock on his door, and he took a minute to gather himself and check his hair before answering the door. When he did, he was welcomed by Laura standing there in a tight pink dress and black pump heels.

“Hey you!” she welcomed him. Much to his surprise, she initiated the hug and that pleased him. Trust.

“Here, let me grab your bags” Tyler piped in as he reached for her pink duffel. With this, he welcomed her into his apartment and straight to the living room. Avoiding the kitchen all together.

The night went well, and it was filled with laughter and flirting. He poured her a glass of wine, which led to two, which led to three. She asked a couple times why he wasn’t drinking, and he simply responded that he would drink with dinner.

“Should we start cooking?” Laura asked as she finished off her third glass of wine.

“Sounds like a wonderful idea, I’m starving.” Tyler agreed.

He took her glass, placed it on the stand next to the couch and stood up. Holding her hand firmly, he led her into the kitchen and felt her halt as they entered. He turned to watch her face as she processed what she saw.

The windows were covered with cardboard, the walls and floor were covered in a thick painter’s plastic, and there was an assortment of tools, saws, buckets, cooking plans, seasonings, and garnishes in the corner. Laura’s heart was beating harder than she had ever felt it beat, and Tyler could feel it in her hand, which he still had clasped in his own. The color was fading from her already pale face, and her lips were turning blue with fright. He could tell she wanted to scream. To run. To fight. But like a deer in the headlights, she was frozen.

Perfect. Time to begin.

The next day, Tyler waltzed into work with more pep in his step than Will had ever seen in him before.

“You’re in a good mood. How was dinner last night?” Will asked with a smirk on his face.

Tyler smiled a wide smile and responded simply.

“Delicious.”