Little Girl I Wanna Marry You

Season 1 – Episode #13

Disclaimer: This episode was created by Peter Berg and written by Jason Katims and Jason Gavin. All recognizable dialogue is theirs and all italics are my flashbacks.

Guest Reviewers: Thank you for your kind words. It makes me want to keep going.

Naguabo: I think that was the second time you called me out on forgetting to include an important line in the dialogue. My apologies. I hope I didn't forget something in this episode. I had to give Eric the last word. I always imagine Eric to being way smarter than he lets on, especially when he speaks to people.

ICanStopAnytime: I hope I did better with the past and present tenses, but I struggle with it because I am jumping around in time. I'll get the hang of it one of these days. I absolutely hated that inner pirate guy scene. I don't know why but my level of annoyance matched Eric's when it aired.

A/N: This was another one of my favorite episodes. I loved this storyline with Smash. Also, I do hope there are people out there reading this. Please drop me a review at the end! Please! Don't make me beg!

It's Tuesday morning and Eric was driving with Tami and Julie in the car. They decided to tune in to a call-in show where the content was just ridiculous to Eric. As Tami nodded her head in agreement with the host of the show, Eric turned his head and looked at her incredulously. How could she listen to this stuff?

Eric couldn't handle it for another second. He reached for the power button on the car radio. "Alright, that's enough."

Tami slapped his hand away. "Don't touch that! We're listening to that."

"Do you want to listen to this girl, who's running around town with her loser boyfriend robbing liquor stores? That's what you want to listen to?"

"Yes. She's robbing for love."

"Dad, it's compelling stuff." Julie chimed in.

Eric wanted to throw her one of his looks that expressed she was as ridiculous as her mother, but the fact that he was driving prevented him from doing so. "Why can't we listen to Sammy Meade? What's wrong with Sammy Meade?"

"Sammy Meade is no good for you."

"Dad, Sammy Meade is just stress is a bottle for you."

"Stress in a bottle, babe."

Eric threw is head back, a bit in frustration, as the radio host started talking about being in control of your destiny. He wasn't going to win this battle. The women in his life have joined forces which meant listening to this crap on the way to work.

After morning practice, Eric was in his office and the unexpected happened. Corinna Williams was not only coming at him from the locker room, but she was coming at him with Smash in tow. She was on fire. "Get into this office." She seethed and slammed the door behind him. "I want to know what kind of team you're running here. What you're doing to my son?"

"Mama, please…" Smash tried to interrupt.

Eric's eyes were wide, looking back and forth between Corinna and Smash, deducing from the situation that Smash was aware of what was happening. Eric wanted to get it out there that he was clueless. "Wait a second. I don't know what's going on here…" He continued to look back and forth, hoping Smash would provide some information.

"I'll show you what's going on here." She unzipped her purse, pulled out a clear plastic bag and threw it on Eric's desk. "This!"

He took in the contents in the bag and couldn't believe it. Steriods? Eric's eyes widened and he slowly, wordlessly raised those eyes at Smash.

"I thought you were a Christian man, Coach Taylor, but you're messing with my son's life to win football games? With his life?"

Smash tried to interrupt. He wanted to stick up for his coach, but his mother stopped him. "You be quiet! I don't want to hear one word out of you. These kids – they're stupid. They think they invincible…."

As Corinna went on, Eric stared at Smash, not believing he would do this. Did he even understand the weight in an action such as this? "I see it every day at the clinic. But Coach Taylor, you're supposed to know better."

"Ms. Williams, I can promise you, I knew nothing about this."

Corinna started to tear up, as she turned her attention away from Coach and to her son. "You have anything to say for yourself?"

Smash swallowed hard. "No, Ma'am."

She looked back at Coach. "I'm taking him home for the rest of the day."

She waited for Smash to walk out first and she followed, leaving the remnants of the biggest mistake of his life displayed out on Eric's desk. He quick grabbed the bag threw it in the top drawer and went to start his day.

Eric was about to call Tami and tell her what the hell just happened. How was he going to deal with this? What was he supposed to do? One phone call would ruin Smash's life. All these thoughts were swirling through his mind when his office line rang.

Mayor Rodell.

She called to invite him and Tami to go to dinner at her house this evening. This couldn't be good. Eric knew she wasn't inviting them out of the kindness of her heart. There was always an ulterior motive and he assumed it had to do with the way he was running his team. But she was the Mayor. He had to go. He silently thanked God that he was married to someone that loved being social. Thoughts of Tami reminded him that he needed her help.

He picked up the receiver to the phone and dialed her four digit extension. When she answered, he started rambling. "Hey. You busy? I need to talk to you. Can you come down here? Actually I can come up to you. "

"Are you okay?" She immediately sensed something was wrong.

"I'm coming up."

When he arrived, he lightly shut the door behind him, making sure it was sealed shut. His eyes spoke of fear and Tami, herself, started to worry. "Corinna Williams found steroids in Smash's room and she damn well near accused me of supplying them to him. I mean, Tami, come on. I may be a lot of things, but I would never, ever…"

She was shocked, but needed him to stop right there. "I know. That's crazy."

"I explained myself as best I could, but what the hell am I supposed to do now?"

She knew his predicament. She knew what he was legally obliged to do. She also knew what that meant for Smash, as well as her husband's future. "I don't know, babe." She said softly, trying to make sense of why Smash would do something so stupid.

Just then there was a knock on her door. "I have to get back to work. We'll talk more about it tonight."

He chuckled. "Oh yeah, and tonight, we have to have dinner at Mayor Rodell's house."

"What? Why on earth are we having dinner there?"

"I don't know, but I'll see you at home."

The last thing Eric wanted to do when he got home was take a shower, put on a suit and go out and be social. He needed a drink. After he got out of the shower and Tami was applying her make-up, he went to make himself a scotch. He needed to take the edge off.

In his socks, shirt and boxers, his mouth watered as he poured the copper-colored liquid in his tumbler. He brought the drink back in his bedroom and lay on the bed. His eyes were focused on his glass as he took his first sip. "Why are we even going over to Rodell's? We don't have to go over there." As he stretched his legs, he noticed Tami laid out several different ties and pants for him to choose from.

"I don't know honey. I didn't talk to her. You talked to her. And don't lie down please. Please, get back up." She grabbed at his legs pulling them over the edge of the bed, turning him into a sitting up position. "Come, on, I put your ties out for you. I put your clothes out for you."

His eyes were no longer focused on his drink, but now on his sexy wife. She was wearing a black dress that accentuated her curves and open in the back. He couldn't help but smile at her as she leaned over him to grab a tie, her breasts very close to his face. She didn't linger. She wrapped a tie around his neck, as his eyes admired her form.

"What are you going to do about Smash?" She asked, patting him on his biceps. "Tie that."

"If I report him and I'm obliged to report him that kid is never going to play high school football again. His career is over." Tami turned to face him as she wrestled with a hanger and his suit jacket. Eric continued. "If I don't report him, which goes against everything I stand for, I can't let the kid play juiced."

"Well, it seems to me that because you are considering doing something you would never normally do, you are leaning that way."

"I don't want to lean that way. I know what's right and what's wrong. I know that difference. But God, Tami, he is a kid. I don't want to be the reason this kid's future is shot."

"You are not the reason."

Eric looked down at his hands, knowing that statement was true. Smash got himself into this mess. Tami came over and put her pointer finger underneath his chin. "Whatever you decide, I'm behind you. Ok?"

"Ok." He winked at her. "Thanks."

"Come on, we have to get going." She said as she slipped on her heels.

He got up to put on his pants, but stopped and walked over to the dresser, pulling her close to him. "You look gorgeous tonight."

"Thank you." She kissed him quickly. "Now get dressed."

Dinner was rather uneventful, excluding the strange woman that joined them. Barbara was a friend of Mayor Rodell's who was very smart and knew a lot about politics and Texas football. They enjoyed after-dinner drinks by the fire when Tami and Eric both realized what was actually going on there. Mayor Rodell was gay and Barbara was her girlfriend. The not-so-innocent touches and the references to each other's families getting together made for an awkward situation for both Eric and Tami. Of course, Tami could handle herself better than Eric in these types of situations.

Tami immediately sensed Eric's uncomfortableness. He was laughing at something he didn't find funny. He could no longer make eye contact with either woman. He started to pull at his collar and scratch his neck. As if the disclosure of their sexual orientation wasn't enough, things got even more awkward.

"Tami, you know I am running for re-election. I'm putting together my campaign team. I want you to be on it."

"Wow." It was all Tami could muster.

Eric didn't like the sound of this at all. He was staring at the woven carpet wondering if this was the sole purpose of them being invited.

"You're a strong, smart, charismatic lady."

"Thank you." Even Eric could sense Tami's uneasiness in those words.

"And, um, together, there's no stopping us. " Mayor Rodell continued.

"Well, thank you." Tami said brightly as she regained her composure.

Eric didn't like this at all. Now, these two women, who happen to be lesbians, are telling his wife that she is charismatic. Eric knew this game and that is why he always hated politicians. They were using her for the sexy woman she is, who also happens to be his wife.

"I appreciate that. That is…" She turned to Eric for some help but his eyes looked a million miles away to her. "…that is flattering. And I would love to consider it." She kept her eyes on Eric. Why did he seem so upset?

Eric didn't say anything about Mayor Rodell's offer when they got home. Tami knew Eric needed time to digest this. Eric never did well with change and if she decided to do this, it would change their lives a bit. She would have to dedicate more time to the campaign than to him. It usually took Eric a few days to get used to a major change in his life. Sometimes it took more.

Eric left for college sometime in early August for summer training camp. When he signed on the dotted line with the Aggies, there was a lot of fine print he didn't even bother to read. As a member of the team and on full scholarship, he was required to do things he rarely wanted to do. He didn't think that leaving Tami behind was going to shake him as hard as it did.

They were sitting on the front steps of his house, saying goodbye. "I wish you would have decided to go to school somewhere closer to College Station. This is going to be hard, Tami."

Tami cupped his face, holding his stare. "You are about to start a new chapter, Eric. There's a whole new world opening for you. You should be excited."

"What if I'm happy in the world I'm in?"

"Well, you can't stay here forever."

Eric couldn't help but feel annoyed over Tami's nonchalance over them being separated. "Don't you even care that we are not going to be together anymore?"

This question caught her off-guard. She didn't expect him to express how deep his feelings ran. Of course, she didn't like it. She was scared things weren't going to work out, but they had only been together for a few months. She wasn't totally convinced that he was even going to want their relationship to continue once he got to college. They talked about it, of course, but Eric wore blinders. He didn't entertain the ideas that girls would be throwing themselves at him, that he would be somewhat of a local celebrity and that partying in college would be very different than what they were used to in high school.

Tami thought about it all the time. She knew she kept her guard up because of how blind-sided she was with Mo. That wound ran deep. "Of course I care, Eric. But I have faith in us. And I will be there to visit you in two weeks."

Eric looked down at his hands as he laced his fingers in out together, trying to think about what to say next. "I'm going to miss you." He didn't want to fight with her on his last night with her, but he was never the type of person to shy away from expressing things that were important to him. "I guess right now, I'm just surprised that you don't even seem to care about how my leaving is going to affect your life."

Tami grew defensive. "Of course I care!" She didn't mean to raise her voice, but she often did that when she felt adamant about something. "I'm going to miss you too."

He rolled his eyes. "I don't think you understand. Nevermind."

She thought she understood. He was going to miss the physical part of their relationship. When he was training hard all day, she would not be there to help him relax at night. She figured he would have to be responsible for all of his own releases. "You have to say it now. You can't just say 'Nevermind' when something is clearly bothering you." His next words shocked her.

"The idea of you not being a part of my new world is going to kill me. I get that you want to go to Houston and forge your own path. You have drilled that in my head over the past couple of weeks. I guess I wish you wanted to be close to me too. I wish you saw me in your future world too."

"Wait a second. I do see you in my future. I see us visiting each other and spending weekends together. I am looking forward to seeing your new world through your eyes." She chose her next words wisely, not wanting to spur yet another argument about the inevitable separation. "I thought you were going to mostly miss the physicality of me."

"I am. No doubt about it, but…."

"What do you want me to say? That I'm worried about your need to be physical? Well, I am, but Eric, I have been down that road before."

"I would never do what Mo did to you."

"Thank you for saying that Eric, but we don't know what's going to happen. A part of me thinks you underestimate what opportunities are going to come your way."

"It won't matter."

"It will…"

"You don't think I'm worried too. I know how beautiful you are, Tami. I am completely aware of how guys look at you, want you."

"Well, we have no choice but to have faith in each other."

"That's it?"

"Trust. It's all we got."

"I'm not going to like getting used to this."

In his office the next morning, Smash came in looking like shit. "I made a mistake."

"Tell me something I don't know!"

"Haven't you ever made a mistake?"

"Yeah, Smash, I made mistakes. I've been late for dinner. I've forgot stuff at the supermarket. I've made mistakes out on the field I've come to regret. Those are mistakes, Smash. What you did wasn't any mistake though, son. What you did was you screwed yourself over!" Eric pounded his hand. "You screwed this team over. You know what you call that?" Eric's anger was coming out as he raised his voice. "You call that a stupid dumbass cowardly act, is what you call that, Smash."

Smash looked at the floor. Eric could tell his words stung a bit. He lowered his voice and continued. "I want to know what you're doing. I want to know how long you've been doing it. I want to know who else knows about it. I want to know where you got it. How about we start right there?"

Eric wanted all the details so he could figure out how to handle the situation. He knew what the right thing was, but he also knew that would mean a lot of bad things to come. He needed to figure out if it was even possible to try and work around this piece of knowledge a part of him wished he never knew.

After hearing the whole story from Smash, he still didn't know what he was going to do long-term, but he knew where he had to start. At practice before watching game film, he announced that Smash would not be playing in Friday night's game. "I'm not asking you to respect his privacy. I'm telling you to respect his privacy." The last thing Eric needed was for his players to pressure Smash about it. The less people knew, the better.

That night, Eric and Tami were in bed, watching the news when Mayor Rodell came on the television. Eric was watching her intently, hating her motive for recruiting his wife. He just didn't have the heart the tell Tami. He figured, at this point, he wouldn't argue with her until she was serious about it.

"She is a smart politician."

"Smart politician with an alternative lifestyle." He decided to put the first part of his concern out there.

Tami chuckled. "Shocking. This town gets weirder and weirder. And why did she choose us to open up to?"

"Cause she realizes what a forward thinking individual I am."

Tami laughed again. She loved when Eric cracked his subtle jokes. He rarely did that with anyone but her. She turned serious, trying not to melt to his charm. "I did look at her website. This education plan that she has is really good."

Eric kept his eyes closed as he spoke. He didn't want her to see the doubt in his eyes. "You know what though? With everything you got on your plate with Julie and me… and my needs and demands, that's an awful lot, isn't it?"

She cuddled in closer to him and flirted as she spoke. "I know you do have many needs and demands…."

"I sure do." He smirked thinking of the things he begs of her to satisfy those certain needs.

"…but the school needs a lot of help. Our school…"

Eric was growing a little frustrated. Was she actually considering this? "Does she even know you voted against her?"

"Details." Tami shook her head, but leaned in to kiss him. She knew the easiest way to get him on-board with this, and it wasn't with her words.

The knock at their front door interrupted her sure-fire plan. Eric got up angrily knowing how easy it was going to be to get laid at that moment, which was now ruined. When he answered the door, Smash stood there wanting to know if he was off the team.

Eric was pissed. "I should have reported this as soon as it happened." Eric seethed. "I'm risking my job. Inside this house, I have a wife and daughter. They depend on me to provide for them." He knew Smash had no idea what this stupid mistake meant for him. "Do you understand that?"

"Yes, sir."

"I don't know what I'm going to do. When I do know, I will let you know. Until then, why don't you do me a favor and try and keep your mouth shut."

Eric shut the door, and placed both palms down on the cool metal. He took a deep breath as he bowed his head to the floor. He needed to figure out a way to get past this, to move on and let the anger go. He just didn't know how to do that when he wasn't sure what he was going to do.

He felt Tami's soothing hands on his shoulders. "You okay?"

"Yeah." He said, not picking up his head.

"Eric, whatever you decide, I'm behind you."

"I know that." He said, as he lifted his head. As he stared at the ceiling in search of an answer, Tami continued.

"I don't want you to make a decision regarding Smash because of Julie and me. You have to make a decision based on what is best for Smash, the team and your career."

He turned around to face her. "All my decisions have you and Julie at the forefront."

He smiled softly. "I appreciate that. But you also need to put yourself there too."

He lightly smiled. "I love you for that. I love you for worrying about me."

"I love you for worrying about me too." She stated simply, as if everyone had the amazing give and take that their relationship had. "Come to bed. This will be here for you to worry about tomorrow."

He did exactly that, but instead of making love, he held on to her. He often wished Tami understood how rare their relationship was.

Tami was right. The next day, the situation was thrown in his face. The media got word that Smash wouldn't be playing and they held a press conference that the athletic director made him attend. He knew the importance of remaining tight lipped.

Then Buddy attacked him. He didn't have time to deal with Buddy Garrity. He was more than happy to get rid of Buddy when Matt came to his office. He was at his wits end, but didn't want to dismiss Matt. Eric was so consumed with Smash, the press and the questions, he didn't fully appreciate what Matt wanted to get across to him. Instead, he took Matt's eagerness to win on Friday as yet another person telling him how to do his job. "I'll take a look at them." Eric snapped referring to Matt's notes. He didn't mean to snap, but his judgement was clouded with outsiders getting in his head.

Friday finally arrived and Eric wandered into the kitchen in a hurry. He was a little bit late and wanted a cup of coffee. He saw Julie sitting at the counter. "Hey. You're late. Why are you not in homeroom right now?"

"I'm waiting for Matt to pick me up. I am going with him to the bus station this morning. Mom said it was okay."

"Bus station?" Eric asked as he reached for the coffee pot to fill his to-go mug.

"Matt's father is going back to Iraq."

Eric immediately felt bad. When Matt came into his office yesterday, he had no idea what was going on. He was usually so in tune with his players. He was usually on top of big things like this. Between this crap with Smash and this damn lawsuit, Eric felt so clouded at times.

"Oh. Okay. How is he doing with it?"

"I think he was surprised at first, but in actuality, I think he feels a bit relieved.

"Good. He's a tough kid. He'll be okay."

"Yeah."

Eric dared to peek behind those clouds. "Things going okay with you and Matt?" He didn't want to feel disconnected with his daughter. "He treating you well?"

Julie shouldn't have been surprised by Eric's concern. It was only a few weeks ago that he expressed his concerns over the ping pong table. "Things are going okay."

"Just ok?" Eric remembered how exciting the beginning of a relationship can be.

"No. They're good, Dad."

"If they weren't good, you know you can talk to me about it. I want you to feel like you can come to me."

"I know that too."

"Good. He's treating you with respect, right Julie?"

"Always, dad."

"Okay. I love you." Eric headed out the door and spent the whole day going over the offense. How were they going to win without Smash? He looked over the plays Matt drew, and he had to admit, they were actually quite good. He had some good ideas in there.

Later that day, Eric was at a coaches' meeting, when he saw Tami in the hallway. She motioned that she would come back, but he waved her to come in. She apologized to Eric's colleagues and she could tell he was a bit peeved about the interruption.

He led her to his office and shut the door behind her. "Why are you interrupting my meeting? I don't appreciate that."

"I'm sorry about the meeting." Tami stuttered, a bit nervous about what she had to say.

"What do you want? Come on now, I'm busy."

"Alright. I wanted to come down and I wanted to tell you that I have decided that I think I am going to go ahead, ummm…" She didn't make eye contact with him, but knew she needed to. She lifted her eyes to meet his. "…join Mayor Rodell's campaign."

Eric's eyes always spoke first. They narrowed, while his lips were pressed together in a tight grin. "Well, that's great." His tone dripped with sarcasm.

"It is great. Honestly, it is great. It's a great opportunity. I'm going to be able to help our school. I'm going to be able to help all the schools in the whole county." As the words flowed out of her mouth, she felt herself trying to sell him on the idea. She knew he was going to be a tough sell, but there was no way she was going to back down.

Eric figured to put it out there as gently as possible. "I'm sure she realizes how good you are." Start with a compliment. That usually eased the blow. "I'm sure she realizes you're the coach's wife. That will help out with the campaign." He saw it. It was obvious to him.

"Oh, you think…" She grew angry. "You think that's why she asked me? Because I'm the coach's wife?"

"I didn't say that."

"That's exactly what you just said." Tami couldn't believe that was what he truly believed. She was not the type of person to ride her husband's coat tails. She always forged her own path. Yes, their marriage was built on compromise, and she may have followed him for countless jobs, but she liked to think she was rather independent. She hated that he didn't think that.

Eric looked back at the coaches through the glass window, taking a moment to gather his thoughts and control his anger. "I don't like politicians. That other night? That little reveal at the dinner and everything…"

Tami rolled her eyes. Is that what he was worried about? That Mayor Rodell likes women? Tami didn't care why should he?

"Just hear me out." He continued. "Something like that gets out in this town? That is not going to do her any good and it's not going to do anyone any good that is close to her. That's what I'm saying."

Tami tried to make sense of his point. "Wait. So you don't want me to do this because she's a lesbian?"

"I'm not saying that." He raised his voice. He tried to control his temper, but clearly, she did not understand what his ultimate worry was. He didn't even know if he could express that with her right now.

Tami argued back. "That's exactly what you said. I'm bouncing it back to you, sugar."

"I'm uncomfortable with it." There he said it. "I'm uncomfortable with it." He repeated.

"Well, you know what? You're just going to have to be uncomfortable with it then.

They stared at each other. Neither wanting to back down. Finally Eric started to laugh. He knew she wasn't going to give in easily. He had been married to her long enough to know that once her mind was made up, it was going to be tough to change. "It's never a dull moment with you."

She laughed back. "Well, that's why you married me sugar."

"I guess so. I don't quite remember why I married you, but there's never a dull moment with you." He loved when she challenged him. It was aggravating and sometimes irritating, but no other woman kept him on his toes like she did.

She walked over to him, closing the space between the two of them. She lightly pecked his lips and cupped his face. "I'm so happy to have your support." She patted his chest affectionately. "I hope you have a great game tonight."

"Uh-huh." He said, the frustration of her constantly winning against him getting to her.

She wiped her fingertips against his lips, rubbing any evidence of a kiss away. "Thank you."

He realized early on that life with Tami was going to be a rollercoaster. At first he thought that the way they disagreed about things was not normal. His mother and father rarely fought, not in front of him anyway. Most girls that crossed his path were always submissive. The ones in high school would be sweet to him, always offering him rides places, baking him cookies, and easily giving into to any sexual request he made.

The girls in college were submissive in a different way. They were submissive with their bodies, with their egos and with their self-respect. With Tami almost two hours away, at times his curiosity was peaked. Girls would throw offers his way that he thought only existed in fantasies.

Tami was never one of those girls. She was never submissive with her beliefs, not with her ideals and not with Eric. He loved her because deep down he loved the challenge and he loved the chase. He was a competitor at heart and when he had to, he would compete with her too.

Thankfully, Tami's degree in psychology gave her credibility when she told him how they acted was normal. "Sugar, we have to get it out, otherwise resentment will follow us around. Honesty always wins, no matter how hard the truth can hurt. "

In the beginning of their relationship, she challenged him with space. After their freshman year, she decided she was going to stay in Houston that summer. After their junior year, she decided she was going to study abroad. She drove him crazy those summers and he probably hitting the bottle harder than he should have.

After they were married, she challenged him to enter the decade of the 90s. She expected him to share household chores, change diapers and put dinner on the table at least 40 percent of the time. His own mother never demanded these things from his father. "I'm college educated, Eric. I work too. As much as I love taking care of you, you need to take care of me too." Eric knew she had a valid point and he was grateful she wanted him to take care of her.

After several conversations of having another baby, Tami blew his mind after a very intense round of sex. As they lay breathless, Tami pulled him right down from his euphoric high. "That one might have done it."

"Huh?" He was barely coherent, trying to catch his breath.

"That felt powerful. You came hard."

"Uh-huh."

"I took myself off the pill a few weeks ago." She said, matter of factly.

He sat up quickly. "What?" He was confused.

"What?" She was confused.

"You didn't tell me you did that?"

"We talked about it, so I did it."

He chuckled, and said for about the thousandth time already in their relationship, "There's never a dull moment with you."

The Panthers won that evening, but it was not without any fourth quarter dramatics that Eric wished he could have been spared. He reached out to Matt, asking him what he thought he wanted to do in a certain situation. He explained to Matt that he looked over the plays and he wanted Matt to make the call on the field. With his father gone again, Matt easily stepped up into that confident kid he had been grooming the past few weeks.

As everyone went back to Buddy's dealership to celebrate, all Eric wanted to do was find Tami. He wanted to talk to her. He wanted to explain that it wasn't his needs that he was afraid were going to be neglected. He wanted to tell her his real underlying concerns.

Fans were hugging him and Matt cornered him to celebrate their collaboration. Eric didn't care about celebrating anything at the moment. He told Matt to hold off and wait until there's something to celebrate. Eric knew the road ahead was going to be very long.

The he spotted her. Tami was across the room, cornered by the Mayor and touching her in a way that made his blood boil. Why did she have to hold her hand like that? Why did she have to rub her arms that way? The only satisfying thing about what he was witnessing was that he could see Tami's uncomfortableness with it too. At that moment, he knew she was feeling a bit out of her element.

Eric couldn't watch anymore. He sought out Corinna and asked if he could have a few words with Smash. After telling Tami he would meet her at home, he took Smash to the diner to let him know what he decided. "What I'm about to say, stays between you and me. You're going to get yourself clean. You are going to submit yourself to private voluntary drug testing, until I decide I can trust you – which will probably be a damn long time."

"Thank you, sir." Smash knew he would owe Coach one forever.

"I don't want you to thank me."

Eric wanted to make sure his next words held weight. "You got yourself into this crap because you didn't think you were big enough? I hope you see the irony in that. You don't listen to the Grady Hunts of the world. You listen to the people that love you and you listen to the people that you trust and most of all, you listen to yourself." He paused and lowered his voice so this next part would stick. "I hope you realize just how far I'm sticking my neck out for you."

"I do. And I'll never let you down again, sir."

"You best damn not."

When he got home, Tami was on the couch waiting for him. "How'd it go with Smash?"

"Okay. I told him my plan. He doesn't seem to understand how hard I am going to punish him, but at least I made the decision. I feel better about that." He walked over and sat on the coffee table in front of her. He rubbed her legs, teasingly, as he asked her about her night. "I saw you with Mayor Rodell. Everything good there?"

"I think so." She said.

"Yeah? She was a little touchy with you, don't you think?"

"A little." She admitted. Then it dawned on her. "Is that what you're worried about?" She sat up, her feet planted on the floor and her legs resting comfortably in between his. "Wait. Is that what you're worried about? That Mayor Rodell is going to hit on me? Is that what bothers you in all of this?"

Eric looked down at his hands and he folded them. "Maybe. I don't like anyone hitting on my wife."

She covered his hands with hers. "Honey…"

"I mean it Tami. I've spent the last 2 decades watching men admire you and now I have to worry about women too."

She laughed. "You never have to worry about anything. You know that."

"It's not just that. I feel like they are using you. You are smart and determined and full of great ideas, but I don't think that is the only thing they see. I think they see your beauty and your charisma and they think that will also be beneficial to their campaign." He didn't know how to explain the next part, but he knew Tami was a straight shooter and preferred honesty over eggshells. "And if I had a losing season and we were not in the playoffs, I would have never mentioned the thing about being my wife. But with this town and the way they think about football, I don't want everyone to overlook your creativity, your determination and your intelligence."

She leaned in and kissed him. "Thank you."

He decided to lighten the mood. "Plus, with all my needs and demands, I'm not sure how you are going to fit it all in."

She stood up and tugged at his hands for him to get up too. "I have needs and demands too, Eric."

"Good. I want you to need me and even demand me, whenever you want."

She stood up, not letting go of his hand and pulled him toward their bedroom. She stopped to whisper in his ear. "I need for you to cum in me, and I demand that you make me cum too."

"Done!" He exclaimed, now leading her to their bedroom.

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