In the Bank

"Oh, my God, John! That was incredible!"

Samantha nearly added, "Why don't we do that more often?"

It would have been a typical comment from her: teasing, complimentary, a little self-deprecating, inclusive, with just a hint of accusation, all meant and delivered in good fun. But she also knew the reason they didn't do it more often, and she felt guilty. She could count on the fingers of one hand how many times John had turned her down for sex in their 14 years of marriage -- and 18 months of courtship prior to that. But kids and jobs and family and house and yard and friends and the rest of life conspired to distract and exhaust her, and so she only got laid once a week or so, usually when he started things.

John lay on his back, his right arm under Sam's neck, his hand softly stroking her shoulder and upper arm. She rolled into him, burrowing her face into the hollow between his shoulder and chest, encircling him in her arms, and pulling her knee up over his thigh. He felt her pussy against his leg, wet from her three climaxes and his two.

As usual, he stayed quiet.

He loved her deeply, and when they made love like they just did he was as happy as he could imagine being. He had arranged for their daughters to spend the night with their grandparents and made the reservations at El Toro, the best steakhouse within a hundred miles. It was also Sam's favorite restaurant. Then he'd done what he always did when they were alone: he stared at her, enthralled and enchanted, reveling in her undivided attention. And the more he stared at her, the hotter she got, until she was tugging him out to their car and then through the door of their home and into their bedroom, where she ravished him. And then was ravished by him. Twice.

He couldn't be objective when he studied her. Samantha was the most alluring person in the whole world. Beautiful for sure, at least to him. Dark hair that fell to her shoulders, big brown eyes that pulsed with energy, a wide mouth that exploded into smiles and laughs when she was happy. She was tall, nearly six feet, long, lean, lithe. She didn't have a lot in the way of curves, but her athleticism and physical grace was far more appealing to him than other women's fuller figures.

But he was just as taken with her intangibles. So generous with her time and money, she always saw the best in people. Sam was devoted to her family, especially their daughters, making time for them every day, investing fully in their activities from dance to soccer to piano to math club to Sunday school. She was optimistic, positive, energetic. She could be impatient at times, stubborn too, slow to give up her ideas even when someone gave a better one, and she did spread herself very thin, so she didn't always have something left for him at the end of the day. And almost never anything left for herself. And, truth be told, she was downright terrible at organizing things too, which is why John took charge of writing lists for the weekly shopping, scheduling the kids' chores and housecleaning, figuring out logistics for pick-ups and drop-offs. But, God, did he love her!

Sam randomly traced her index finger along his chest and down to his belly button and back up.

"I love you so much, John." He smiled and answered with a squeeze to her shoulder with his big hand. "What you do to me...."

He'd always been able to bring her to dizzying sexual heights. She wasn't a virgin when they met in college -- she'd had two short-term lovers and a one-night stand before John -- but when they slept together after their fifth date, she knew no one would ever be able to outdo him between the sheets (or on the kitchen table, or bent over the back of the sofa, or on the picnic blanket in the forest preserve). He was tall and skinny back then, with shaggy brown hair and hazel eyes that gave away little, and lips that gave away even less. He was still economical with his words, but he'd filled out some so that in his late-thirties he was rangy but solid. His bigger shoulders and chest made him even more attractive. Sam could see the attention he got from women wherever he went, but she had no doubt in his fidelity. He would no more stray than she would. Sure, he could be stubborn, and if God made a man more inflexible in his views than John then He was just punishing some unlucky soul. But John cared, deeply, about people even though he rarely said it.

Sam loved resting her head on his strong chest; it rose and fell with his gentle breathing. He wasn't asleep, but he was content. She loved that she could bring him such joy. And she would do it again in the morning before they went to get the kids from her parents.

Why didn't they do this more often, indeed?

* * * * *

Anna's grin was slight, but Samantha saw it twitching at the corners of her mouth. The women, coworkers for eight years, best friends for seven, had offices next to each other, and they always met at the coffee machine for a few minutes before their day started. They were mildly competitive with each other, and Anna had beaten Sam into the bank by a couple minutes this morning. They'd say nothing about it, but they'd both keep score. By both women's ongoing count they were running about even, which is why they could be such good friends.

"How was your adults' night?" Anna asked while Sam filled her mug.

"Delightful. I do love what that man does to me!" Sam flashed her big smile. "Did Teddy tear off a piece this weekend?"

Anna laughed. "Sunday morning. Like clockwork. It even lasted a bit longer than usual -- thank God for babysitting grandparents!"

Sam nodded and smiled. "No kidding. Almost makes childhood worth it. So, are we ready for Day One of the new regime?"

"Think new boss will be the same as the old boss?"

"We'll know at 10:00."

The break room was crowded -- the bank didn't have meeting rooms big enough for the entire staff (less the two tellers who stayed at their posts), so they made due with the break room. The branch wasn't huge, but besides the six tellers, two part-time, it had three client service reps, an operations manager and part-time staffer, one IT person, an admin, three consumer bankers, and Samantha and Anna, who were both commercial bankers. Phil Johnson, the former branch manager, had just retired, and Robert White, the bank's regional manager, was there to introduce Phil's replacement.

"Thanks, everyone, for making the time to get together. I know you're all very busy, so we'll keep this pretty short. I'm thrilled to introduce you all to your new branch leader, Landry Beals. Landry has been up in Duluth for the past two years, turning that branch into one of our best performers. We won't talk about where he was for the four years before that, because he was with one of our competitors, but I speak for all of the bank's leadership team when I say we're very excited about his future with us, and we're expecting great things from him and from you!"

Everyone applauded politely, having heard some version of this same speech from various corporate leaders over the years. Landry shook Robert's hand and turned to his new team who were watching him with curious but neutral expressions.

"Thanks, Robert, I appreciate your faith in me but also in this team. I'm really looking forward to getting to know each and every one of you during the next few weeks as I come up to speed. I think we're in a great market for what we offer our clients on both the consumer and the business sides of the house, and I hope we can build the kind of team that will take full advantage of our opportunities. I've got some ideas I've picked up in my travels, and I want to hear your ideas too. I'll be scheduling some time with each of you over the next couple days. We'll have plenty of time to brainstorm, but in the meantime grab a donut or maple stick in the back there, and then let's get back to delivering our best for our clients!"

They applauded politely again. Robert and Landry positioned themselves next to the door to the break room so they could talk to each person as they left the room. Samantha and Anna hung back so Anna could snag an almond danish. Curious about their new boss, Samantha looked over at Landry.

He was a compact man, a couple inches shorter than Sam, and wiry. His blond hair was short and styled with a bit of gel, and he had a close-cropped mustache and beard. His suit fit very well and hung nicely on his frame. He didn't skimp on his clothes. His grey eyes were intent, focused on whoever he was speaking with, and his smile flashed easily and just as easily retreated. He was confident, certainly, but Sam felt like he also radiated energy, and he gave her the impression of a coiled spring. He seemed like a man of action, a man who got things done. That would be a refreshing change from Phil, who was a nice man, a description that pretty much covered all of his good qualities.

"I was afraid we'd get another Phil," Anna said quietly. "I'm glad I was wrong."

Sam nodded. "We might actually learn something from this one."

Anna laughed, and Sam chuckled too. And then it was their turn. Anna took the lead.

"Nice to see you again, Robert. And welcome aboard, Landry. I'm Anna Thomas -- "

"And you must be Samantha Sorenson. Our commercial banking team! Nice to meet you both."

"I see you've been researching your new branch," Anna said with a smile.

"Of course!" Landry laughed, then lowered his voice conspiratorially. "But to be completely honest you're the last two in the room, so it was more a process of elimination."

They all chuckled at that. Sam extended her hand first to Robert then to Landry. "Robert, pleasure as always. Nice to meet you, Landry."

"I'm especially looking forward to working closely with you both," Landry said. His expression was open, confident, refreshingly direct. When he spoke, he looked people in the eyes, and he listened intently too. "I came up on the commercial side of the business, and it's my passion to help businesspeople accomplish their goals. I'm sure we'll make a terrific team."

The women nodded and agreed and excused themselves to go back to their offices. As they walked away Sam thought that a new day at work had indeed dawned.

* * * * *

"Mom, you're not listening!" Melissa had been trying to tell her family about her sixth-grade project on the US-Dakota War, but Samantha hadn't heard anything she said.

"I'm sorry, honey -- I was thinking about something at work. But I'm listening now."

Melissa pouted a little, but she was excited about her first year of middle school and wary that her little sisters might usurp her time to share at supper.

"I was saying that I hope I get to work with Bea and Ingrid on my history project. We're supposed to work in groups of two, but we have an odd number of students in our class, and we asked Ms. Reichart if we could all work together so no one has to do it by themselves. She said she'd think about it. I hope she lets us do it. I don't really like the part about war though. Why do they make us study all about wars? It's boring and gross and sad. I think we could be studying a lot of other things instead. There's plenty of stuff like pioneer homesteading and Ojibwe villages without having to study about wars." She finally stopped to take a breath and a bite of pot roast with a dab of gravy.

Margot piped up. Where Melissa was the talkative-but-serious older child, middle-child Margot was the straw that stirred the drink. As much as possible. In a sing-song voice she said, "Why don't you work with Denny Truelson? I'm sure he'd like to work with you."

"He's not even in my class! And he's just gross!" Exactly the reaction Margot wanted. Denny Truelson had crushed on Melissa since the second grade, and Margot was blessed with the sibling radar that discerned just how much that bothered her sister.

"That's enough teasing, Margot," John said gently. "Why don't you tell us about your day?"

"We're learning how to calculate the area of a rectangle in math. I got all the questions right on our quiz, but Barkhado missed one and Toni missed two."

"That's wonderful, sweetie," Sam enthused. Margot liked math, and she seemed to have her father's knack for it too.

"Math is so boring," Monica said. She was a year behind Margot in school, and she wanted desperately to be Margot. And just as desperately not to be Margot. "We talked about whether dogs or cats are better pets, and then we had to write a paragraph about why."

"And what did you say?" Sam asked with a smile.

"Dogs! Cats are so snooty," Monica said, turning up her cute little nose to show her disdain for cats.

It was Melissa's turn to clear the table and Margot's turn to load the dishwasher, but both Sam and John hovered to make sure they didn't miss anything. Then Sam did the handwashing. She was standing at the sink when John hugged her from behind and pulled her gently against his chest.

"That was a great supper. Are you okay? You seemed far away for most of it."

She patted his forearms with her wet hands. "Just thinking about work."

"Is everything okay there?"

"Yes, it's great!" she enthused. "It's such a difference having a manager who has a vision for how to improve things and the skills to make it happen. Phil just let Anna and me -- well, everyone really -- do our things, but Landry knows commercial banking, and he's had a lot of success attracting clients. It's so refreshing to have someone who understands what I do and appreciates what I bring. I'm really stimulated by him. It's like he's just turned on the switch in my mind, and I can't stop thinking of the things he's said. It's just so exciting!"

John smiled and kissed the back of Sam's head. "I like seeing you so happy. It's great for the kids to see too. Please remember that even you need a break sometimes -- you can't work 24/7."

"I know. It's just so energizing. I'll do better."

John smiled. The chance of that happening was very, very low. But he'd said his piece, and she'd do what she would.

* * * * *

Landry knocked on Sam's door, but didn't wait for her to look up from her screen before sliding into her guest chair.

"Got a minute, Sam?"

Sam quickly removed her computer glasses and put them on her desk next to her keyboard.

"What's up?"

"Free for lunch? I want to discuss some ideas. Long-term opportunities."

"I've got time now."

"We need to get out of here. Eliminate distractions. Noon?"

"Sure. Anything I should prepare?"

"Nope. It's big-picture stuff. You're already there. I just want to strategize on how to take full advantage. Plan on 90 minutes."

Sam nodded and turned back to her computer as Landry left. The man was a whirling dervish, forceful and energetic. Nothing wasted. Everything he did had purpose and part of an integrated whole that only he could see. He was formidable, and it was exciting to be in his orbit. So different from working with Phil. Or anyone else. Who knew work could feel so thrilling?

She was surprised when she walked out to meet Landry at noon to see both Anna and Carl Lidstrom standing in the lobby with their coats on. Carl had been one of the consumer bankers for the past four years, and his numbers were consistently good. In fact, last year he had been the branch's representative at the company's recognition event at the Hotel Ivy.

Landry strode up and smiled quickly at the group. "Ready? Let's walk down to Maggie's."

Maggie's was the local lunch haunt for the branch employees, a soup-salad-sandwich place with enough tables to accommodate them. They ordered at the counter, then took their silverware and drinks over to a corner table as far away from both the door and the counter as possible. As soon as they'd sat and put their coats over the backs of their chairs, Landry started.

"As I mentioned to each of you, I want this to be a big-picture session. Where we're taking our branch over the next couple years. I think we have the foundation in place to do special things. We might have to make a change or two on the rest of the team, but I feel like they're in good shape to handle our existing business pretty well. You three are my A-Team. 'A' for acquisition."

He looked each of them in the eye, smiling, asking them to accept his confidence in their abilities. Sam felt a flush in her neck and face. She saw Anna had a similar response, and Carl was beaming too.

"I've watched you all over the past couple months, and I'm very impressed with each of you. While everyone else is keeping the home fires burning, we can be growing both our consumer and business accounts. We have a ton of opportunity, and it's going to take a lot of effort to deliver on it. But I know you can do it. We can do it."

The three bankers grinned at the faith in them their boss expressed. It was new to them all, but it energized them, and they leaned in over the table.

"So let's talk about some stretch goals and then some ideas on how we can make them happen."

Their conversation buzzed through their lunch, and Landry had to rein in his team at the end.

"Great session, guys. Lots of ground covered. I need you to write up your top three areas of focus and put a timeline together for each. Work together, work separately, whatever works best, and I'll set up individual meetings for later in the week to review. We've got the ideas, now let's get back and start working them."

The lunch jolted Sam, and she and Anna talked for another hour later in the day, brainstorming, extending some of the ideas, fleshing out others. They were both surprised to realize they'd stayed a half-hour later than usual. And they would have worked longer except that the after-hours program that Anna's younger son attended called to ask when she planned to pick him up. Anna apologized profusely and rushed off, which reminded Sam that she had to hustle home to get supper started.

Sam had never felt so ramped up in her life.

* * * * *

A few weeks later Sam crashed through the door, apology already in motion.

"I am so sorry, everyone. I got tied up in a meeting with Landry and Anna and time just got away from us. I'm really sorry."

John and the girls looked up from their places at the round table, while Sam hung up her coat and put her purse and briefcase on the floor next to the hall table. She walked quickly to her spot opposite John, heels clicking on the hardwood floor, and slid into her chair.

"Everything looks delicious, honey. Thanks for getting it together."

John smiled coolly and nodded. "Margot was just telling us about her music lesson with Mrs. Jensen. Catch Mommy up, sweetie."

Margot told everyone about her piano lesson in great detail and then mentioned that her friend Simone had called her a mean name -- annoyingly, no one asked her what the name was -- and then Monica shared her news that the mean boy Joey pushed Charlene down at recess and just ran off without even saying he was sorry, and then Melissa insisted on reprising her day because Mom hadn't been there to hear it the first time through. Then Margot wanted to add some more news about Simone's new puppy, and Monica tried to think of something else to say too. John tried to focus them on their food, but when they stopped eating and started trying to antagonize each other he had Monica clear the table and Melissa load the dishwasher.

Sam ran water for washing the pans and colander. John came up behind her and put his arms around her waist. He put his nose into her hair and gently inhaled her scent. He felt her smile.

"You've been working a lot lately."

"Yes, we've got so much to do the days just fly by. Landry has us cataloging the NAICS codes for all of our commercial clients, and then we'll research other businesses in the area with codes that are hot spots for us. He thinks we can increase our new business over 25%!"