In Love With An Older Man 3

April 1990

"My God, I'm just so nervous," Cindy said.

"Relax, I'm sure everything will be just fine." Gary patted her hand reassuringly.

The two of them were at Carly's sweet sixteen birthday party which, at the insistence of Gary's parents, was being held at their country club.

"My dad wanted to give her a '91 Toyota Corolla for her sixteenth birthday," Gary had confided to Cindy. "He tries to spoil her like he's always spoiled Melissa. I told him that if she had to actually earn it, she would appreciate it a whole lot more. We agreed that he could buy her a new car if she graduated high school with at least a 'B' average. That'll give her some incentive to keep her grades up."

Carly was beautiful, radiant in a pink and white dress and white heels. Cindy had taken her for a manicure and pedicure the day before, and that morning she had brushed Carly's hair until it shone and helped her with her make-up.

"Wow! You look just like a model," Gary had said when they were finished. "I really appreciate your help, Cindy."

"I thoroughly enjoyed it," Cindy replied. "Marcia and Jan used to help me a lot with my make-up when I was her age."

Jake looked uncomfortable in a suit and tie. Cindy felt sorry for him. She knew how much he hated to wear ties.

A Lincoln Town Car pulled up outside the country club, and Gary's parents, Norman and Sylvia Greenberg, got out. They entered the country club, and Gary introduced them.

"You don't look Jewish at all to me," Sylvia blurted to Cindy.

"Hey Mom, I want you to try this new kind of lox I found. It was imported directly from Israel," Gary said quickly. He and his mother headed for the hors d'oeuvre table.

"Well, it certainly is...a lovely day for a party," Cindy stammered.

"That it is," Norman agreed.

Gary's brother Jason and his sister Melissa arrived with their respective spouses. Melissa did indeed look like the kind of person who would consider breaking a fingernail to be a major emergency, Cindy thought.

Soon all Carly's friends had arrived, and the party was underway. Sylvia had ordered Carly's cake from a bakery, and it was lovely, white with pink flowers and 'We love you, Carly' printed on top with pink icing. Carly squealed with happiness over all her nice new presents, not appearing to mind at all that the keys to a Toyota Corolla weren't amongst them.

Afterwards the guests mingled and talked to one another. Feeling a great deal of trepidation but determined to make the best of things, Cindy plastered the biggest smile she could manage onto her face and marched right over to where Norman and Sylvia Greenberg stood.

"I hope that you're enjoying the party," she said with a warm smile.

"You look awful young," Sylvia said. "Do you know how to cook?"

"Of course she does, dear," Norman said mildly.

"Jackie was never the best of cooks, although she did try, the poor dear," Sylvia went on. "Gary always looked so skinny every time I saw him. I know she wasn't feeding him right. And those poor children! They were always so tiny! And always sick with something, a runny nose or a cough..."

Cindy had the feeling that she would be standing there listening to Sylvia Greenberg's voice for a very long time.

"Have you met my Jason? I'm so proud of him." Now Sylvia was onto the subject of her other two children. "He just won a multi-million dollar lawsuit against some crooked corporation. I guess that'll teach them to treat their clients right."

"That's nice." Cindy didn't know what else to say.

"So, did my mom talk your ear off?" Gary asked. The party was winding down, and most of the guests had gone home.

"They seem like very nice people," Cindy said politely.

"I'm a major disappointment to them," Gary said softly.

"Why?" Cindy was shocked.

"My brother is an attorney, and I was supposed to be the physician of the family. When I was in pre-med, I had a weekend job as a DJ for a local club. That's when I discovered that I enjoyed the music a heck of a lot more than my studies, and my dream of someday owning my own radio station had it's beginning."

"So you dropped out of pre-med?"

"I went through the motions and finished getting my degree, but my heart wasn't in it. After I graduated I went to work full time at a local radio station and never looked back."

"Do you ever regret not going on to medical school?"

"Not one bit. I'm perfectly happy right where I am. I follow my heart in my professional life just as I do in my love life."

"I really admire you for that, Gary."

"Thank you, Cindy. It means a lot to me to hear you say that." He grinned mischievously. "Oh, and I fibbed about that lox. It wasn't really imported from Israel. It came from the deli department at Albertson's."

"But don't ever let my mom know that," he whispered conspiratorially.