Extended Families

Season 1 – Episode #18

Disclaimer: This episode was created by Peter Berg and written by Kerry Ehrin, who also wrote episode #4 and episode #12. Recognizable dialogue is theirs, italics are mine.

Guest Reviewers: Thank you for taking the time to write a review. I hope I can continue in your eyes to integrate the voices of these characters to somewhat match what the creators and writers give us. A shower scene would have been good at that one moment, but I try and save those smutty moments so they don't appear in every single chapter. I wish we got more of it in the show too. Although I wrote about their first time in a previous chapter, there are other moments that always lead to those bigger moments. I am glad you guys enjoyed that.

ICanStopAnytime: I always thought Buddy's infidelity was a bigger story than the writers made it – especially how it affected Eric. The scene in this upcoming chapter shows Eric a little unstable as he is in awe of Buddy and his nonchalance of losing his wife. Ahhh, the back story – we can go on and on about it. Thank you for the kind words.

Naguabo: I think putting Buddy's infidelity in this episode worked really well, even if they didn't explore it the same way I did. Thanks for the review.

FNLFAN: I wanted to transition Eric going from this playboy football player to this head over heels in love sap when it came to Tami. It's a hard transition and I feel like there is so much I can do with flashbacs to bridge that gap.

A/N: I was completely overwhelmed with the reviews for this past chapter. Yes, "I Think We Should Have Sex", gave us a lot of Tami/Eric moments and it was really fun to play off of them. This next episode did not give us much in the way of Tami and Eric, but I did my best.

Eric's jaw hurt. He felt it as he clenched his teeth for what felt like the millionth time that night. It started to feel real. The fact that it was his first year as the head coach of a 5A school, and he was on the verge of taking a broken down team, with the loss of Jason, to the Texas State semi-finals. If he wasn't so zoned in on the game, even he could admit in that moment, that feat was impressive.

One last play. It all came down to his defense.

One final snap. This last play that would determine if he could bring his team to rank as one of the top four in the state.

One Hail Mary pass. Eric saw the ball release.

One spiral in the air. Eric pointed at the defense to back up.

One tip in the end zone. Eric felt his feet move toward the end zone, not even conscious of his movements.

In that moment, he was a hero. He could, if he thought about it long enough, come to the conclusion that he may have just gotten lucky. Not right now. He wasn't going to think about the fact that their offense could have caught the ball. He was going to jump up and down. He was going to congratulate Mac. He was going to embrace Tami. He was going to celebrate what he and those boys have accomplished – just for a moment.

Tami let go of Eric but not before whispering how proud she was of him. She couldn't help but feel that this was an accomplishment for both of them. Eric had dreams and she knew this was the first of many. Chasing a state title as a head coach was going to put him on the map. A map that was very blurry a few months ago, when Eric sat in his office and asked Tami how the hell he was going to go on without Jason.

Time changes everything.

Her thoughts were interrupted by Julie. "I'm going to head to an after-party with Matt. Ok?"

Tami hated these teenage questions that came out more like demands. "Where?"

"It probably will start at the Alamo Freeze. I'm going to go get ready and head out with Lois."

"Be home by midnight, Julie."

"Midnight?" She asked, a little pleased inflection in her voice. "Really?"

"Yeah. Go have fun." Tami gave her an extra hour tonight, knowing what an exciting time it was for Dillon and for the students. She knew Eric would know exactly where everyone was going to be tonight. Plus, after watching Eric so intense, so focused, she planned for her own excitement at home.

After Julie ran toward the school and disappeared into the girls' locker room, Tami waited for Eric in the parking lot. Several parents stopped by to say congratulations and she made small talk. One by one, the cars pulled out of the lot.

Eric usually had to talk to his boys, talk to the media, talk to his coaches. When she saw Mac and Crawley emerge sans Eric, she knew he must be showering. Mac stopped in front of her. "He'll be out soon. I'll wait with you." Mac offered.

"Don't be silly."

"Susan doesn't expect me for at least another half hour."

"Go on. He won't be long."

"You sure?"

"Thanks Mac."

Five minutes later, Eric spotted her leaned up against the side of their car, clad in tight jeans and an even tighter light blue top. God, she looked good, he thought.

He slung his bag over his shoulder and leaned in for a kiss. It reminded her of when he used to do this at his college games before he boarded the bus. She smiled at the familiarity of it. "Good game, Coach."

He kissed her again, briefly. "Can you believe this?"

"I believe in you." She kissed him briefly this time. "You smell good."

"I didn't want to waste any time at home." He finally looked around. "Where's Julie?"

"She went to the Alamo Freeze, and then probably to some party." She lightly pushed him back so she could squeeze away from him and around the front of the car. She grabbed the handle and opened the door. "You know where?"

Eric didn't answer right away. He opened the back door, threw his bag in the back and then took a seat behind the driver's wheel. Tami waited patiently for him to speak again. "I heard the boys talking about going to Riggins' house."

"Oh, great." Tami replied sarcastically.

Eric started the car and pulled out of the parking lot. Silence fell between them and Eric knew that was driven my Tami's wandering thoughts. After a stop sign and a hard right, he spoke. "Matt will be with her. We have to trust him." He thought about it further. "We have to trust her." After the previous weekend, they both agreed to give Julie a little bit more freedom, hoping the longer leash would prevent the rebelling she seemed to be doing lately.

"I wasn't the one who ripped a blanket off of them."

He chuckled, knowing his behavior that night was a bit ridiculous. "Well, I wasn't the one who was freaked out about them from the start." He made a left into their development. He looked at her, not wanting to start a fight, especially when he knew where their evening was going to end. "You can never admit that you could possibly be wrong about something."

"What?" She didn't mean for the inflection in her voice to peak, but she was surprised.

"I admit that Matt is probably a good influence on Julie. You were wrong from the beginning."

"You're crazy."

"See?" He chuckled again. "You can't do it. You always said it was a bad call, but then later on you realized that I was right and you were wrong, but…"

Tami wasn't even listening to him as he pulled into the driveway, her eyes glued onto the slumped figure on their front step. "Honey, what is that thing…."

"…you never said that you were sorry."

"…that is on our front porch? What…"

Eric turned his head and followed Tami's eyes.

"It's moving. Can you…" She was going to ask if Eric could see what it was, when realization dawned. A gasp escaped from her mouth.

"Who is that? Damn!" Eric knew Buddy Garrity at his house right now had the potential to ruin his entire night. His fun, fun night with Tami.

"That's Buddy Garrity." Tami's eyes widened. "That's Buddy Garrity." She repeated. "Sitting on our front porch."

"I see it. I see it."

Tami smiled and waved, as a friendly gesture. She couldn't help her southern manners. "Oh no, I wanted to go to bed."

"Shhh." Eric didn't want to Buddy to hear her complain. "Get out and say hello. Get out…"

"Please make him go away."

As Buddy walked over with a smile on his face, Tami slapped a smile on her own. "Hey Buddy."

"The Semis!" He said as he hugged Tami. He released her and shook Eric hand. "Great game, Coach!"

"What are you doing here?" Eric knew the longer he stayed the less likely he was going to get laid.

"The Semis baby!"

"You could have called!" He said, trying to get his point across that he wasn't thrilled to see him.

Buddy's whole disposition changed, putting his hands in his pockets and looking at the ground. "I just, oh hell, Pam locked me out."

Eric was about to say something, but Buddy continued. "She kicked me out. You know how women are about these things."

Eric definitely didn't know how to respond to that. He had no idea how women were about these things. He would never have been as stupid as Buddy to cheat on Tami. He also knew he had to figure out a way to shut Budd's mouth. Comments like that were not going to help his case tonight. He glanced over as Tami and she looked pissed. She sarcastically smiled her sweet southern smile like a double edge sword. "Oh right. Yeah."

Eric looked back and forth between the two, not daring to make a move.

"So, I was wondering if I could just sleep on your couch for a couple nights to give Pam a chance to cool down."

As surprised as Eric was by this request, Tami was shocked. Her wide eyes and open mouth told him so.

"Please?" He begged.

Eric was smart enough to not say a word. He knew it would take a miracle or a biblical act of God for Tami to cool down if he ever betrayed her like that. His nonchalance and the simplicity of a couple days healing this wound sounded ridiculous, even to him. He couldn't even imagine how that sounded to Tami.

Tami spun on her heals, walking toward the house. "You are welcome to stay because it is the Christian thing for us to do. Three days tops and it doesn't mean we are okay with what you did." She unlocked the front door and left it open for them to follow.

When they were in the privacy of their bedroom, Tami was putting on his pajama pants and Eric slipped under the covers in only his boxers. He was still hopeful. She roughly tugged at the covers, clearly annoyed.

"I know you're upset." He started. "For the record, I don't condone what he did. I need for you to know that. I need for you to know that I know what I have in you. I would never jeopardize that."

Tami was flat on her back, staring at the ceiling. "I can't imagine just 'cooling off', as he put it." She recalled Buddy's words and his carefree attitude about losing his wife. "He has no idea what he has done or how he has hurt her."

Eric didn't want to talk about Buddy. He just won the quarterfinals. He wanted to celebrate. He wanted a blowjob. He wanted to have sex with his wife. He wanted something other than a conversation about Buddy Garrity. Eric turned onto his side, draped his right arm over her torso and leaned in to kiss her neck. "I don't really care about Buddy right now." He pecked her neck again. "I care about you." He lightly kissed her ear lobe. "I care about reassuring you that I love you."

"You care about getting laid." There was still the tone of annoyance that carried in her voice.

He laughed that low sexy laugh she loved. His lips trailed lower to her chest, happy that the only material in his way was a tank top. "It was a good game, Tami." He was practically begging. "I worked so hard out there for that win." He moved his right hand to her breast, kneading it with desperation.

"Eric…" She wanted to stop him. She didn't want to have sex with Buddy Garrity in the house.

"You're the one that invited him in." He knew what she was thinking.

She pushed him away, and sat up a bit. "I can't. I just can't." Thoughts of Buddy hearing them invaded her mind.

He wasn't finished. He crawled up to her sitting position and kissed her neck again, recalling their disagreement in the car. "I won't even make you say sorry for his invitation. I won't even make you admit that you were wrong." He whispered as he tried to nuzzle his head in her breasts.

She pushed him off again. "You want me to admit it? Fine, I'll admit it. I hate to be wrong. Thank goodness it rarely happens!" She joked.

Eric finally took the hint and moved off of her. "I don't like to be wrong either, but you know what the difference is between you and me?" He spoke more freely, knowing his words were not going to ruin an already ruined evening. "I can say I'm sorry. I can admit it when I'm wrong."

It was true. Tami could agree with him on that. Eric was always the first one to take ownership of his mistakes. That was what made him an incredible athlete. That characteristic is what made him an incredible coach. He had the ability to listen to others and process their opinions. He was much better than her. She started to soften, but then he opened his mouth. "If it wasn't for me and my abilities to admit my mistakes, you and I wouldn't be together right now."

Eric regretted his words. He felt them when he spoke them, but only a day later, he realized how wrong he was. He hurt Tami and he knew she had a stubborn streak. He knew she wasn't just going to let him take those words back.

'I need some time.' Did he though? Did he really need time away from her? He should have been clearer.

'I can't do this with you, like this.' He was upset about his injury. He was upset that their future was trashed.

'I can't live with disappointing you too.' She never said she was disappointed in him. Now that he was able to reflect back on their fight, he knew she never felt that way. When she asked him how much time he needed, his final words sealed their breakup.

'I need forever. I need to figure out my next move and I can't do that with you hanging on to me.' Why would he say that? He knew that wasn't the case. Tami Hayes was independent. It only took one day for him to realize that she really didn't need him like he thought.

When she didn't return his four phone calls that following evening, he thought that maybe she just needed a night or two to cool off. He said some hurtful things that he couldn't take back. He had to explain himself, but would Tami even give him the chance?

The next day he called another four times, leaving message after message with no response. On the fourth day, he left her another message, threating to drive to Houston if she didn't return his calls. With each message came a higher degree of desperation.

Sometime during the following week, she left him a message: "Please stop calling me. Please stop leaving messages." She hoped he would just make this easier for the both of them.

He didn't. He continued day after day to leave message after message. When she knew he would be in class, she left him another message. "I'm trying to move on Eric. Please let me."

Move on? That was it? What the hell did she mean? It only had been three weeks since he said words he couldn't take back. How could she possibly move on? He couldn't even think about it. He spent so much time being monotonous; he forgot how to be a player.

During those first three weeks, his teammates knew Eric was hurting. They knew the massive disappointment he felt now that the NFL was no longer a part of his dream, his plan, his future. They helped him through it with alcohol. During one of those inebriated nights, Eric disclosed to his buddies that he and Tami broke off their engagement. They tried to help him through that part as well.

It wasn't lost on Eric that his friends spread it around pretty quickly that he was newly single. Suddenly, if he just let himself, he could be that high school playboy he once was. He could have easily slipped back into that lifestyle, the lonely physical relationships he once deemed as meaningful. All the alcohol in the world couldn't make him go back to that. He thought it would be so easy. He thought he would be able to fuck whoever, whenever. It was possible. It was offered. But he couldn't. Then he thought it was the hump of intimacy he couldn't get over. So, when he was kissing Karlie Ryan in the bathroom of some party and she slid to her knees, he smiled to himself. He thought that maybe, just maybe a good blow job would help him move forward. The sound of the zipper woke him up to the fact that he was never going to get over Tami. "Let me help you forget about her." The tugging of his pants ejected him into his Tami-less future and it scared him.

It was almost four weeks with no contact when he drove to Houston. He parked on campus and waited in the quad which was surrounded with mostly education and psychology buildings. At 11:50 in the morning, the front doors to all the buildings opened at once. Classes were switching out as Eric's eyes searched for her. She was easy to pick out with her long strawberry locks and her killer body. His feet felt like cement when she emerged, with two books in her arms, her purse slung over her shoulder and some guy's arm around her waist. He leaned forward to sprint over and find out who the hell she was with. Eric was grateful his feet remained planted.

He followed her with his eyes, trying to figure out the scenario playing out in front of him. He couldn't help but notice the guy she was with was the complete opposite of Eric. He had light hair that flowed a bit, kind of like a surfer. He continually brushed his hand through it, and he thought he might vomit when he saw her do it once for him, a little bit of affection in her eyes. He was tall like Eric and had an athletic build. Tami always liked athletes. First Mo, then him and now this guy stole her heart.

They were walking toward the meal hall across the quad, and when they were almost out of sight, Eric finally found his footing and rushed toward the front doors, not wanting to lose her – the sight of her anyway.

He saw her get on line to purchase food as he grabbed a seat far enough away to observe her actions. Who was this guy? Eric suspected they were more than friends. How far had Tami gone to forget him? Horrible thoughts of Tami having sex with this mystery guy invaded his mind. Thoughts of her going down on him made Eric sick. What had she done when he had done nothing? He made sure not to do anything that would make it impossible for her to take him back. He knew Tami had lines. Maybe that was why it was so hard for him to cross one.

She took a seat and he watched her interact while she ate lunch. She didn't seem like her relaxed self. He imagined that if he started to date again, it would be hard to fall back into the comfort that they once shared.

After fifteen minutes of watching her, surfer boy took their trays, discarded them and lent his hand to help her out of her seat. As Tami stood up, he felt his insides burn as her eyes caught his and widened. He noticed her get a bit flustered, words flowing from her mouth which he assumed was some sort of excuse as the surfer boy turned to look at Eric.

Eric suddenly got nervous. He didn't want to get into a fight. His arm was in sling. He definitely didn't want to get into a fight. He watched Tami accept a kiss on the cheek. Surfer boy walked away and Tami made her way over to him.

Eric's legs felt like jelly as he stood. As she got closer to him, he wanted to say so many things, but all that came out of his mouth was a compliment. "You look beautiful."

This seemed to piss Tami off. "Really? That's the first thing you have to say for yourself?"

"I-I-I…" Eric stuttered, not knowing why he suddenly couldn't formulate words.

She let out a heavy breath, and started to walk away.

"Tami?" He called.

She walked backward toward him. "I'm not going to do this here, in the middle of the cafeteria. If you want to talk, fine, but I'm not going to let you embarrass me here. You already humiliated me once Eric. I won't give you that opportunity ever again."

When they got outside and he caught up to her rapid strides, he finally spoke. "I'm sorry."

"Yeah. I got your messages."

"I was wrong."

"Great." She rolled her eyes. "Are you done?"

"No. I'm not done. I realized I'll never be done."

"Too late, Eric because guess what? I'm done." She started to walk again, her steps a little fast this time.

"Where are you going?"

"What did you think? You were just going to should up here and I would be thrilled that you have the decency to grace me with your presence?"

"It's not like that. I have been trying to get in touch with you every day for almost four weeks. I am trying to make this right."

"You can't make it right. You can't." She abruptly stopped and shoved him on his good shoulder. "You can't take something back that's already out there. Your true feelings are out there and I now know what they are."

"No you don't." He defended. "I said I was wrong. I'm sorry. I can't live without you. I can't figure myself out without you. I'm nobody without you."

She softened at his words, not as angry with him, but definitely sadder for the situation they were in. "A month ago you were nobody with me." She looked down at the ground, trying to take control of her breathing. When she looked back up at him, he saw the tears in her eyes. "I'm never going to forget what you said. I'm never going to forget how I felt in that moment. You treated me like I was some sort of groupie that was hanging on to your earnings potential, that everything we shared was not real. I wasn't hanging on to you for any other reason than that I loved you and wanted to spend the rest of my life with you."

"Loved? You don't love me anymore? Just like that?"

"I can't be in love with you anymore. I can't allow myself that when I know the truth. I can't pretend anymore that what we shared was more than me just supporting what you thought was going to be your life."

"I was wrong!" He yelled, so loud that some of the lingering students across the quad turned around.

"Don't yell at me. Don't you dare yell at me."

"I'm sorry." He said looking at the ground.

"I want you to leave. I want you to let me move on. I want you to try and move on, too."

"I can't. I won't." Eric put his hands on his hips, staring into her eyes. "I don't know how you can."

"You think this is easy for me?"

"It looked easy to me. " He countered.

"Well, it's not. None of this has been easy."

He dared to ask the next question. "Did you sleep with him, Tami?" He thought he was going to be sick. "Did you?"

"Eric, that's none of your business. Not anymore. You gave up that right when you tossed me aside for your own ego."

"Tami, I'm sorry. I was wrong."

Eric knew with Buddy in the house, he was not going to convince Tami to have sex. "If I didn't admit my faults, we would have never gotten back together."

Tami looked at him like he was crazy. "If you didn't break up with me in the first, you would have never had to say you were wrong!"

Frustrated with her inability, he rolled over and said goodnight.

The next morning, Eric woke to the sounds of a loud scream and a slammed door. He looked over at Tami who was not in bed next to him. She was already up and brushing her teeth. Julie barged in and demanded answers. Eric was reminded once again that she wasn't his little girl anymore but an angsty teen.

"Do I even need to ask why Buddy Garritty is shaving in my bathroom?"

"Your bathroom?" Tami spun to face her. "When did you buy that bathroom?"

Eric sat up and rubbed his face, and explained that Buddy was going to be staying with them for a few days. As much as Eric hated to lie to Julie and act like this was no big deal, he didn't want Buddy to think he could stay with them forever. He didn't want Buddy to think it was an open invitation, but he also needed Julie to understand that they were helping a friend out.

"Oh, n-n-no! He is not staying a couple of days!"

"I'm not crazy about it either." Tami said, the toothbrush half hanging out of her mouth. "He invited himself."

"Wait, wait! So now you guys just decided this?"

"Quit yelling at me, it's early in the morning." Eric draped his left leg out of the bed.

"I mean, Buddy Garrity in a towel, in my bathroom, shaving." Julie continued with her arms crossed. "He's half naked."

Tami tried to interject, but Eric got up and headed for the door. "You know what the problem is? You women. You women are very dramatic. He wiggled his fingers like he was placing some sort of voodoo spell on them.

Eric didn't want to deal with the yelling. He headed to the kitchen and started making coffee. Buddy eventually emerged from the bathroom, in Panther sweat suit gear and took a seat at the kitchen counter. "Julie seemed surprised to see me."

Eric gave him an annoyed look. "Oh, you think?"

Eric filled the pot with water. As he held the pot in his hand, he looked again at Buddy. "What's your plan?"

"My plan?"

"Yeah, your plan? You know the plan to get your family back, for them to let you in the house. What's your plan?" Eric waited a beat and when Buddy didn't answer right away, Eric grew slightly annoyed. "You have a plan, don't you?"

Buddy drummed his fingers against the countertop. "Pam needs to cool down, that's all."

"That's all?" He turned his back to Buddy, staring at the drips of coffee slowly making their way into the pot. "What do you think? She's just going to forget about what you've done? That's she's just going to pretend like it didn't happen?" There wasn't many times where people stunned him, but this was definitely one of them.

"No?" Buddy asked. When Eric's eyes narrowed in his direction, Buddy knew what his answer was to that. "Well, do you have any suggestions?"

"Suggestions?"

"Sure. Any advice? What would you do?"

Eric impatiently pulled the coffee pot, which was half way filled to pour his cup. He put the pot back and the drip continued. Eric lowered his voice, and gripped the counter feeling sick of the possibility that Tami would ever be that mad at him. "I have no idea what I would do. You know why? Because I would never in a million years do what you did. You are a stupid man."

"A million years, Eric? Really? A million?"

"A damn trillion, Buddy. Do you really understand what you have risked? Do you even care? You come in here, like a few days away from your family is going to make this all go away."

"She'll forgive me. Pam will."

"Well, maybe that's the difference." Eric said, releasing the counter, conceding to the fact that Buddy is not necessarily going to understand. "I would never cheat on Tami because I could never be sure if Tami could ever trust me again. Trust is very big for her. It's big for me too." When Buddy didn't seem to catch his drift, he continued. "No woman and no amount of sex would be worth the risk of losing her. That's it. That's all I got."

"I call bullshit, Eric." He slid a clean mug across to Eric, nonverbally asking him to fill it.

"Huh?" Eric took the mug, turned, and filled it.

"If a gorgeous woman flirted with you, offered you unattached sex…"

Eric interrupted him. "There's no such thing of unattached sex anymore, not at our age anyway."

"…and you had a good idea that Tami would never find out, you wouldn't be tempted?"

"Being tempted is one thing, Buddy."

"Okay. So, you're telling me you would act on it, if you knew Tami would never find out."

"Again, there's another difference." Eric said taking another sip. "I don't need anyone else. I can't say much more than that without embarrassing my wife, so I'll leave it at that."

"I didn't say need. What about want?" Buddy sipped his own coffee.

Just then, Eric heard their bedroom door open. "I don't want or need any of it." He whispered in case Tami was approaching. "You better figure out what the hell you are going to do because you can't stay here forever."

Something happened that afternoon that Eric had been waiting for his entire career. All it took was one phone call for Eric to leave his office in a hurry.

College.

TMU.

Dinner.

They were interested in him.

He couldn't wait to share this with Tami. He was not the type to let excitement show. He never showed his feelings. It's what made him speak so well to the media. It made him an excellent poker player. But he was excited. He and Tami have been dreaming this dream ever since their NFL dream died all those years ago.

When he walked through the door, he immediately smelled something delicious and heard the sizzling of the frying pan.

"Hello?" Tami's voice called when she heard the door open.

Eric walked slowly down the hall not saying a word, in fear Buddy was present. The last thing he needed was Buddy to know this news.

"I'm in here making pork chops." Tami voice dripped with aggravation.

"Yahoo." Buddy voice came from the living room. When Eric turned in that direction, there was Buddy lying back in his recliner.

When he turned back to Tami, he could sense the annoyance she was feeling. "Hey, can I talk to you for a second?" He was hoping she would catch his drift and understand he wanted to talk to her in private.

"Mmmhmm." She threw an annoyed look back at Buddy before following Eric down the hall and eventually out the front door. Once outside, she went off like a firecracker. "Honey, he is driving me crazy. He went and bought a whole bag of groceries."

"Shhhh." He wanted to get it out. He needed to get this out.

"He's making me make him…."

"Stop. Wait a second. Relax. Shh."

"…porkchops. He's pushing us out of our own house."

He cupped her face and she responded with a frustrated, "What?"

He took a deep breath, lowered his voice and gave her the good news. "Neil Kenny, the athletic director over at TMU called this afternoon. He and his wife would like to have dinner with us this evening to talk about the future."

"The future?" She knew what this meant although she was shaking her head in disbelief. "Our future?"

"You busy tonight?"

A smile spread across her face. "No, I think I'm free."

"We'll say it's a date then?"

She leaned in and kissed him, wrapping her arms around him. She brought him to her tightly. "Oh, that's amazing. I'm so proud of you."

"Thanks, babe." He loved making her proud.

"What are we going to do about Buddy?"

"The last thing I am thinking about is Buddy right now. I have no idea what I am going to say to this man that speaks to level of how badly I want this."

She pulled back to look at him. "Come on, now. Your passion for this game will speak volumes."

"You want this too, right? I know that this has been a dream of mine ever since my injury. But for you? It's dream for you too, right?"

"My dream is for you to be happy."

He kissed her lightly. "That's funny, because that's my dream for you."

After telling Buddy they were going out for dinner, just the two of them, they retreated to their bedroom. Eric sat on the bed, pulled out a yellow legal pad and started jotting down notes. He often did this before talking to the press or before a big meeting. His thoughts, ideas and opinions always filtered through his mind better once they were on paper in front of him.

She knew him well enough to know not to bother him during this process. She went into their bathroom and turned on the shower. The hot water felt good against her skin and she couldn't keep the smile off her face as she thought about Eric and college ball. She let the hot water relax her, but when she closed her eyes and dipped her heard backwards under the pressured water, a wave of cool air hit her and she quickly opened her eyes.

Before her stood a naked Eric with admiring eyes and a cool smile. He stepped one foot in and paused. He couldn't help but look her up and down. His eyes fell first on her breasts, but eventually trailed lower to her most intimate of areas which she always maintained in the sexiest of ways.

"Well, are you getting in or out?"

"In."

"Good, because you're letting all the cold air in."

He stepped in all the way and captured her lips with his. He kissed her softly at first, but her naked form was almost too much for him and he quickly deepened their kiss. His tongue searched for hers as he pushed her lightly so she would take a step backwards. The cold tile against her back startled her and she gasped.

He chuckled. "I'm sorry." He kissed her again and wrapped his arms around her. "I want you so bad right now." He pushed his hardened groin against her thigh.

She arched an eyebrow, knowing better. "You just need me right now because you're nervous."

He bowed his head and spoke to the porcelain under his feet, watching the water run down the drain. "Maybe."

She reassured him with another kiss. "You have nothing to be nervous about." She used her pointer finger to lift his chin, wanting his eyes to meet hers. The water trickled down his face as he stared into her deep blue honest eyes. "They reached out to you. They are interested in you. They see what I see." She kissed him and leaned further into her, his manhood right at her entrance. She gripped his shoulders for balance, knowing what was about to come next.

"Oh yeah? What do you see, Tami?" He felt a tear forming at the corners of his eyes, the moment of her raw honesty melting him right there under the warm cascading water.

"I see you truly passionate about a game that is not just a game to you." She took a sharp breath in as she felt his tip against her folds. She whimpered, but formulated the words he desperately needed to hear. "I see a person who is about to catch his dream." He pushed into her slowly, inch by inch. She lifted her leg, wanting more, urging for more. He hooked his forearm under her knee, but pulled out completely. "I see someone who is deserving."

He slammed back into her and she moaned loudly. She held still, wanting to make sure she heard his words. "You have always been a big part of this dream. Always, Tami. "I couldn't do this tonight without you."

After their intense round of lovemaking and a shower, she was stood in front of her closet wondering what to wear. She thought about Eric's words in the shower and couldn't help but smile to herself.

He was so wrong. He could have gone without her tonight. She was grateful that he didn't want to go without her, but he was forgetful. He did these types of things without her in the past. Had he forgotten?

"I got in." Tami said, making her way into his off campus house, waving a white paper in her hand.

He looked up from the kitchen table, littered with paper plates and empty beer bottles that have been there for God knows how long. "Got in to what?"

"Middlesex in London." She couldn't keep the smile off her face. "Eric, can you believe this? I am going to get to spend the 6 weeks this summer in England."

Eric's mind was racing. He was trying to recall the conversation they had a few months ago about this. She said she was going to apply, but he also remembered expressing his concern over the fact that this was the summer before their senior year. He was going to be contacted all summer long by NFL recruiters. This was the summer they were supposed to decide their future together.

"What are you talking about? You can't go away for 6 weeks!" Eric pushed his chair back so he could stand.

"Um, yes I can and I am." She said, her eyes widened in disbelief.

"No, you can't. This summer we are going to have to decide where we are going to live. This summer we have to meet with front office guys to weigh our options."

"Well, you're going to have to do that on your own, Eric. You don't need me to hold your hand."

"I didn't say my options, Tami. I said our options."

"Don't you want a say in our future? Don't you want to figure all this out together?"

She walked passed him and toward the fridge and grabbed a soda. "I trust you Eric. It's not like you are going to sign anything until any official offers come in and that won't be until the fall."

"How can you not care about this? How can you be so flippant?"

"Flippant?" She asked. "Flippant? How about annoyed? Maybe even pissed."

"Don't turn this around on me."

"How about 'Congratulations Tami' or 'I'm so happy for you Tami'." She countered.

"I'm not going to lie about how I feel about this. I don't want you to go. I don't expect you to take off for six weeks so you can party while I am making decisions for our future."

"Who said anything about partying?" She couldn't believe he was getting like this. "I got the opportunity to live abroad and experience a different culture. I have wanted to do this since I moved to Houston."

"How can you be so irresponsible? How can you expect me to do this on my own?"

"You're a big boy, Eric. Figure it out."

He did just that. He figured it out on his own. He made a list of what he liked, what he thought she would like and how those lists overlapped. After all these years, he still was unsure of himself without her, and that amazed her.

There was one person that certainly wasn't happy about being left alone with Buddy this evening. Tami was trying to put out the fire as Eric took his sweet, sweet time in the bathroom. "You are seriously not expecting me to stay home alone with Buddy Garrity?" Julie asked. "Are you even comprehending the depths of awkwardness?"

Tami pulled a necklace out of her drawer and held it up to examine if this was the right necklace for this momentous dinner. She was barely listening to Julie go on and on. "Listen to me." She made her way over to the mirror to put in her earrings. "This is a very important dinner. It is very important to your father. It is very important for his career. His career is what pays for all the things you like for him to buy for you, that you ask for. You don't have to sit down and have popcorn, watch movies with him."

"Mom…" Julie made the best argument, but Tami was not giving in.

Finally, Eric emerged from the bathroom. "Hey, I heard everything your mother said. Listen to her, she is always right. We have to go."

It wasn't often Tami and Eric ate in white clothed restaurants. It's not like they particularly avoided them. Combined, their salaries were much higher than the Dillon average. They just never had time. Tami couldn't help but think that maybe they just thought they never had time.

When they pulled into the parking lot and Eric turned the key in the ignition, he kept both hands on the steering wheel staring forward into the darkness of the evening. Tami leaned over and pulled the keys out for him. "Babe?" She questioned.

"Hmm." He kept his eyes forward.

"Everything is going to be fine." When he didn't turn his head toward her, she asked, "What are you so worried about?" When he didn't answer, she could tell he was struggling with words. "Whatever happens in there, won't change a thing in here. You know that, right?"

He looked at her, his eyes a little glassy from the emotion that was taking over. "I know that. "

"Good. Show them your passion that I see in what you do every day."

They got out of the car and quickly wrapped one arm around her waist as they walked to the front door of the restaurant. She kissed her temple. "I swear you will never know how much your support means to me."

In the end, Tami was right. There was nothing to be nervous about. This wasn't a job interview. This wasn't an opportunity for Eric to show them who he was or what he was capable of. They already knew. They were aware. They saw his passion, just like Tami said they would. She really was always right.

Please review. Please don't make the lapse in time I created in between updating chapters to discourage the reviews. My apologies once again.