Chapter 14

The next morning Tim told her parents that he intended on finding some more permanent accommodation. He explained that while he loved living in their house that perhaps is was time he moved on. Tim made it clear that as soon as he found a place he would move on. Her father gave her dark looks for at least a week. It was clear that the Coach had enjoyed having another male around the house. Julie couldn't remember having nearly as much fun with her dad than when she played ping-pong with Tim, Coach and herself. Coach and Tim took it real serious, hitting the ball clear across the garage and Julie, well she just giggles from the insanity of it all.

Friday night came along quickly and the Panthers were playing Laribee. Dillon utterly and completely destroyed them and the celebrations were going to erupt. Waiting with her mom and Gracie for her dad to come out of the locker rooms didn't seem to take that long at all. Tim strode out at the same time. His long legs encased in denim that expertly hugged his butt, just like she wanted to do later. Julie blushed - she could no longer help herself. As they approached she heard her dad asking Tim about his plans for this evening.

"Not much Coach, I was thinking of a quiet night in," Tim replied. Coach did a double take and then grinned at Tim.

"Sure son, a quiet night, that's a good one," the Coach laughed, his eyes crinkling and his hair more wild than ever. Tim laughed back at him and gave a quick glance in Julie's direction. They had planned on a quiet night, meaning that there wouldn't be a lot of talking. That wasn't lying, was it?

Coach and Tim stopped in front of Mrs Coach, her dad quickly scooping Gracie into his arms to recite the stats for the evening. The child was doomed. Julie stood awkwardly not really knowing what to do. Having a secret relationship right under her parent's noses was not great for the stress levels of anyone. Especially when the other half of the deceitful duo was as hot as Tim was. She wanted to be near him all the time, to have her hands on him and his on hers. If it was possible to have guy withdrawal she definitely suffered from it. Worse, her parents still believed she had an irrational dislike of Tim and watched her carefully to ensure he wasn't victim to another random attack on his person.

"Well we're going to go home honey, aren't we?" Tami drawled out her sentence. "Perhaps Julie could grab a lift to with you to the party you are heading to Tim." Julie looked at Tim, merriment dancing in her eyes.

"Oh Mom do I have to? With Tim c'mon?" Julie complained to her mom. All part of the act, the thicker the act the more her parents tried to get her to spend time with Tim.

"Yes I think you should Julie. Maybe you could come home and watch Gracie and your father and I could go out?" Julie abruptly shook her head in disagreement. She was going out. "Okay that's settled, if that's okay with you Tim?" Tami confirmed with Tim. He nodded and the both of them shuffled towards Tim's truck.

"I hate the lying," Julie confided in him when they were sitting in the truck. "I don't want you to move out but I want to be able to go out with you in public. I want you to move out but I want my dad to approve. This seems really hard." A hand settled on her knee with a reassuring rub. He just looked at her with the heavenly eyes of his and she knew he hated it to. They had no choice. Well they did – not see each other or secretly see each other. Considering they really couldn't be in close proximity without kissing, groping or fighting, there was no choice.

What initially seemed to be a weird pairing made more sense as their days together grew. She was a book reader, he was a people reader. She talked too much, he didn't talk enough. They were both stubborn. Their eyes spoke too much. They possessed a fire that ignited their passion for one another and for an argument. She would argue with him and he would try to change the subject or diffuse the conversation with humour. He calmed her down with a simple look or touch. She worried too much, him not enough. She would call him out on his crap and he would have to admit to it, she made him be better. They fit together. They complimented one another. It was more than what they thought it would be.

"Have you found a place yet?" she asked hopefully and anxiously. He started up the truck and drove towards the quiet look out where they had started going to be alone. "Tim?" she asked. "You realise I can't read your thoughts right?"

He pulled up at the look out. He turned off the engine, sat back and slid her over the seat to tuck her beneath his arm.

"Let's go and lay on the hood," he shelved her question. She didn't push, she had learnt that pushing Tim really didn't work except that it made her face go red in frustration. They got out the truck, meeting in front of the grill. He picked her up by the waist and lifted her to the hood. He followed, they leaned against the windscreen, and their legs spread across the hood. They lay side by side, arms behind their heads, looking at the stars. Julie could sense change was coming, he had found somewhere to live, she was sure of it.

"Tomorrow I am moving back in with my brother. We talked. We're good." It was typical for Tim to summarise what had been hurtful to him a month or two earlier into three short sentences. He was moving and that was that. It was done.

"You know what this means..."Julie sighed.

Author's Note – I'm not sure about another update, tomorrow at the latest. I'm glad you've liked the past few chapters as I was feeling I was 'off' and couldn't figure out why. Anyway, I am also currently deciding whether to wrap it up soon or to continue. Thanks for the regular reviewers and those that took the time to PM me, I appreciate it. Cheers WhoJ