[August 30]

Tami's mind drifted as the pastor droned on. Other than the dull preaching, Tami had decided this church wasn't so bad, even if Eric had chosen it based solely on the spring flag football league. It was a sizeable, without being impersonal, and it seemed to have a lot of good programs, including a Mommy and Me playgroup on Tuesdays afternoons that Tami had tried last week. She wasn't particularly concerned about Julie making friends, but she needed to make friends. The women in the group were friendly, and, to Tami's surprise, educated - not the typical housewives she had known in Tyler. Several worked part-time and offered her advice on improving her resume. The church and its grounds were pretty. The pastor had yet to say anything offensive. She could get used to attending here.

Eric nudged her now and pointed to something in the bulletin. She'd amused herself by daydreaming during the sermon, while Eric had apparently been reading. Julie was probably having a blast bossing around the older kids in the preschool nursery class where they'd deposited her before the service.

Tami glanced down at a section in the announcements headed "Job Opportunities." Above Eric's finger, there was a listing for a church secretary. She sighed. She didn't want to be a secretary. It was time to pursue her calling in counseling. But she supposed she'd apply. She wanted to work, to make money, to contribute, and at least the pastor probably wasn't going to come onto her.

She shrugged at Eric. His eyes widened as though to say, "What? I thought you'd love this!"

"Fine, I'll apply," she whispered. "I can be a church secretary for a while."

He shook his head. He tapped the paper again. She looked, and that was when she realized he'd been pointing to the paragraph below, not above, his finger:

Christian Counseling Ministries (CCM) is seeking to hire new, part-time counselors. CCM is a non-profit organization that provides free or reduced cost counseling services to troubled teens throughout the Arlington area. Psychology or counseling degree preferred. 20-30 hours a week. Flexible scheduling. $7.50/hr to start. Opportunity for advancement.

Tami snatched the bulletin from his hand and read it again.

[September 3]

The JV games were held on Thursday nights, though Eric would be helping out on Friday nights too, and, if they were lucky, a couple of his guys would get a few minutes of play time with the big boys.

It was an entirely new experience watching Eric coach instead of play. Tami wasn't quite sure where to look - at the game, or at the sidelines. She did a little of both, and she noticed that the head JV coach turned to Eric often. She also noticed the head coach of the varsity team noticing all this. He was observing the JV game and sizing up the up-and-coming players but also, Tami suspected, sizing up his coaches.

The Bowie Bandits were playing well. Eric must feel proud of himself, Tami thought, and full of masculine adrenaline. She was pretty sure the sex tonight was going to be thrilling, like it so often was after his winning college games. She tried to pay attention to the game instead of thinking about that, but it was hard not to let her mind wander, especially when he would dig his hand into his thick hair in expectation, or when he would flash that endearing smile when one of this boys did well, or when she would hear his deep, commanding voice overcome the background noise.

When he did meet her at the sidelines after the game, which Bowie won by 6, his eyes were as shiny as they were when he was drunk, and he was breathing a little heavily from all the running along the sidelines. His hair was adorably rumpled and just a little damp, the way it looked after sex.

God she wanted him. It didn't often hit her like this, the urgent need, but when it did...

"Good game, hon," she managed finally. "You did great."

He smiled and kissed her and whispered, "Even if I'm not playing, do I still get a victory -"

"- Of course you do. I'll get Julie to bed before you get home."

[*]

When he walked through the front door of the apartment, which opened immediately on the living room, she practically attacked him. He laughed in surprise at first, but then kicked the door shut behind him and returned her passion. They ended up on the living room floor, Eric rolling her on top of him so that he'd be the one to endure any potential rug burn, and he did get a good one.

"Badge of honor?" Tami asked as she kissed his angry back later. He'd rolled to his side to show her the sacrifice he'd made for her. She was spent and satisfied and naked except for her blouse, which was unbuttoned down to the last two buttons. She kissed his burn one more time before he rolled to face her.

"That was hot," he said. "You were..." His smile was wide and sloppy. "You were horny."

"I am sometimes."

"After games," he said.

She shrugged. "Other times too."

"Not like that." He kissed her nose. "I guess the advantage of being a JV assistant is that I'm at two games a week."

"How many coaches does a high school football team need anyway?"

"As many as it can get. And they got me cheap."

"You were an amazing bargain. I hope they raise your stipend next year."

He urged her up from the floor and they went to bed. She stripped her shirt off the rest of the way, and they crawled together naked beneath the sheets. She suspected they'd both want to go for two eventually, after some conversation.

"So," he asked, when she was spooned back against him. "How did the interview go this afternoon?" They hadn't had a chance to talk about it. He'd been at the school getting ready for the game. She'd left Julie with a friend she'd made at her mommy and me playgroup when she went for the interview.

"I feel good about it," she said.

"But they didn't offer you the job right then and there?"

She laughed. "No. But they said it was okay that I don't have much experience, that they realize they aren't paying much, and they let inexperienced counselors do mostly the fee-free work. So if I screw up, they won't feel like they've cheated anyone, at least financially."

"Did they say that?" he asked.

"No, but I read that between the lines. And, when I get more experience, pay goes up, the hours go up." She realized she was already talking as if she had the job, but she did feel quite confident about the interview. She'd spoken to the director of the ministry, and she felt they'd hit it off. He was a middle-aged man who did not say questionable things. He'd shown her photos of his own daughters, who were four and eight years older than Julie. "I think they do good work, helping kids who can't really afford counseling. I'd love to work for them."

"$7.50 an hour is not bad," Eric said, "for a first job. I mean, when you think about all the time I'll be putting in, between the teaching and the coaching, I think I'm going to end up making about $8 an hour."

"More like $9," she told him. "I know. I did the math one time."

He kissed her bare shoulder. "It's not bad, Tami. Especially if you love it. More than you were making at Baylor."

She turned in his arms and kissed his lips. "I know it's not bad. I hope I get it."

"You will," he told her. He smiled. His eyes roamed her chest in the light of the one lamp they'd left on.

"You need to get up early for work tomorrow, sugar. You've got another game."

"I know what would help me get a good night's sleep."

She chuckled and put a hand flat on his chest. He covered that hand with his and slid it downward.

[September 8]

When Eric got home from practice, Tami told him about the phone call she'd just received. "I got the job!"

"Of course you got the job," Eric said. "Balcony date night? Should I go get some wine?"

"Sparkling," she told him.

When they were settled in the chairs and drinking, she talked about how nervous she was, but also excited.

"That's how I felt when I started this coaching job. Well, and the teaching."

"How's the teaching going?" He didn't talk about that much. Football consumed him these days.

"Not bad," he said. "The principal sat in the back of class today and watched me. That was nerve wracking. And she said I shouldn't make the kids do push-ups when they forget their homework, but, I tell you what, the ones I've made do that have not forgotten their homework a second time."

Tami laughed. "I bet you're a fun teacher."

"I told you. I don't want to be fun. I want them to learn. Although…I am thinking of having them do a war re-enactment with water balloons on the baseball field."

"Not the football field?"

"I'm not going to mess up my field." He reached out, took her hand, and raised it to his lips to kiss it. "So tell me more about this job you're starting."

She knew that half the reason he was listening so intently was that he wanted to get laid later, but she didn't care. He was listening. She talked about her fears, her hopes, the techniques she planned to apply...the stars came out, and, at length, they went in.