In the Bank

"I'm glad you're enjoying your work, hon. A little notice when your schedule changes would be helpful though. I had to scramble to put supper together. My repertoire isn't very extensive, and the girls are getting tired of spaghetti two and three times a week."

Sam stiffened a little. "Maybe you need to broaden your menu, John. I can't always help it when I have to work late."

"And I can't always drop everything at work to get home either. I want to be a partner in this, but I need to know when you're doing something and when I'm doing it. Look, tonight wasn't a big deal. But when you called me at 4:40 last Wednesday and said you couldn't make pick-up at 5:00, I was in a meeting with Clete. I have a little goodwill there, but that's gonna go fast if I have to bug off like that again."

"I've been putting work second for years to be there for our girls, John. I don't think it's too much to ask for you to step up now that I have more responsibilities at my job." He couldn't see her face, but he knew her cheeks had pinpricks of red. They always did when her temper fired.

"I don't have any problem with stepping up for our family. I just need to know when. That's all."

"But I don't always know when I'll need to work late."

"How about this then. Let's split up the week on Sunday after supper. I'll have primary responsibility on my days, you'll have them on yours. If something comes up, we can ask the other one for help. But if the other one is committed too, then it's back on the original partner to figure it out. Deal?"

Sam sighed and grumbled half-heartedly, "I guess we can try it and see how it goes."

"Thank you, my love."

* * * * *

Landry really didn't have a thing for married women. It just wasn't a dealbreaker for him. He found all kinds of women attractive, and some of them were married.

As much as he lived for his work, he had other needs as well. He wasn't ever going get married again -- at least he didn't think so -- but a willing sexual partner who could hold an intelligent conversation over dinner (or breakfast) made the hours he wasn't working far more enjoyable.

He'd been in this new city -- well, suburb anyway -- for six months now. At first he was consumed with learning his team and his customers and the business opportunities, then he sorted out his gym and shopping and townhome maintenance routines, and now that he'd covered those basics he started to think about some companionship.

He didn't really do the bar scene, which was just as well since he'd need to drive two towns over to find a bar or club worth visiting. He'd joined a couple cycling meet-ups, but they skewed older. Like retired older. He looked into cooking classes, but he didn't really like cooking, so spending time and money to cut his fingers with impossibly sharp knives seemed like a waste. He didn't do church, and the local bookstore was a bust too. The gym and the coffee shop and the grocery store offered some promise, but they weren't exactly target-rich environments. Then again this town was mostly families living the bedroom-community life, so the whole area wasn't exactly target-rich. Unless, of course, you extended the target to include married women.

But there was one other place.

He was reluctant to fish in the company pond. Far too much risk, and as a banker he had a healthy respect for risk of any kind. But his needs were growing with each passing day, and they were starting to affect his concentration on the job. He used both his right and left hands regularly, but even that wasn't enough variety to stave off his growing restlessness.

And it's not like there wasn't someone at the bank who checked all the boxes for him. Very pretty, but also so optimistic and energetic. Really upbeat. And she really dug into her work too. That passion for professional accomplishment was like catnip to Landry, since he also had it in spades.

But she was married. And he knew from experience that married women carried an awful lot of risk.

He sighed. He'd give the gym another go. Maybe a yoga session or spin class this time.

* * * * *

John liked company picnics.

They'd gone to his company's event last weekend, and this Saturday it was the bank's turn. The bank was a lot smaller -- John's company had enough people for a 6-team softball tournament (Sam's and his team finished third), but the bank probably had about forty people in total. Still, he loved to take his turn at the grill and sample the potluck dishes and play all the family activities. He was going to tie himself to both of his younger daughters in the 3-legged race leaving Sam and Melissa to see if they might be able to snag first place. He wasn't antisocial, but he also wasn't outgoing in the least. He liked to sit at the periphery of groups of people and listen to the talk, part of the group, but never at the center.

Which is why he and Anna's husband Teddy seemed to find themselves together at every bank event. Not only were their wives best friends, but the two men were also polar opposites, and opposites do attract.

John was reticent; Teddy was garrulous. John was largely content and always contained; Teddy was ambitious, striving and boisterous. John was tall and lean; Teddy was shorter and square. Not fat, just thick. Their wives were physical opposites too: Sam was dark, tall, flat, while Anna was blonde, short, curvy. The wives had more in common than their husbands though; both were lively, funny, and open.

So John inevitably found Teddy -- or Teddy found John -- and they'd spent the day in easy camaraderie. They'd already covered the Vikings and the Twins, I-394 construction, vacation plans up to the lake, and the merits of the new DQ compared to the old Culver's.

"What do you think of the new guy?" Teddy asked, using his chin to point to where Landry was talking to Sally Gunderson and her family.

"Seems okay. Sam likes him a lot. Says he knows what he's doing and gives her a lot of freedom."

"Anna says the same. She says he's a little intense, always thinking about work, always pushing her, but he's at least competent and actually asks his team for input. I guess compared to ol' Phil anyone would look good. And this one does look good."

John smiled. "I suppose, if you find aggressively fit and focused attractive. Is Anna working a lot more? Sam is spending a lot of time at the branch."

"You're asking me?" Teddy laughed. He was first out the door in the morning and usually didn't get home until supper time. His commitment to his sales job paid off though -- he and Anna and their two sons lived in the new subdivision in a 5-bedroom Colonial that easily outstripped the 4-bedroom older ranch that John and Sam owned ten minutes away. "She's a lot happier with her work, though, which is all right with me. Less stress for her usually means more opportunities to de-stress for me, if you know what I mean!"

John chuckled and held out his beer bottle. Teddy's booming laugh rang out followed by his bottle clinking against John's.

Sam and Melissa finished second in the three-legged race, while John and Margot and Monica fell down six times and couldn't finish because they were laughing too hard.

John really liked company picnics.

* * * * *

Sam beat Anna to the coffee pot and smiled at her best friend.

"Good weekend?" she asked.

Anna shrugged. "I suppose. No nookie for Teddy. Aunt Flo came to visit."

"My sympathies. John went without too. He got on me again because I was doing some work on Saturday, and that just pissed me off, so we missed our afternoon window without the kids. I never realized how unhappy I was here before Landry showed up. Now can't wait to get into work!"

"I know, right?" Anna said. "I feel like I was just punching the clock all those years with Phil in charge. Now we're cooking. With gas!"

"I just wish John understood it better. I tried to explain how rewarding it is to work really hard and see great results, how it takes sacrifice to really achieve something great. Like Landry always says."

"What did John say to that?"

"He said he got it. That his job was like that too. He said he had to put up boundaries so his work wouldn't encroach on his family time. But I don't think it's same thing. If his work was so great he'd get completely immersed in it like I do, and he'd lose himself once in a while."

Anna snorted. "I don't think John ever loses himself. Teddy, on the other hand, loses himself in every football, baseball, and hockey game that comes on the TV."

Sam laughed too. "John only watches TV when he's completely done with his to-do list. I think he accounts for every single minute of the weekend. And I swear he has our holidays and vacations scheduled out to the second too. I love that man dearly, but he drives me insane sometimes."

"Good morning, ladies." Landry slipped by the pair with his U of M mug and filled it with coffee. "Who's driving my A-Team insane? Whose ass do I need to kick today?"

Anna said, "We're bitching about our husbands. You know what they say, can't live with 'em...."

Landry waited for the punchline until the silence dragged out so long he finally got the joke. He laughed loudly. "Very good. Haven't heard that one before."

He waited to see if there would be any further discussions about their spouses, but when none were forthcoming he turned their focus to work.

"Do you guys have a few minutes to talk verticals? Let's go to Sam's office and dig in."

Sam and Anna had offices that were the same size, but mirror images. They each had a single guest chair, but Sam's desk was less cluttered, so Landry always sat on one corner of the desk and let Anna take the chair. He absently picked up a Rubik's Cube that Sam got as a Secret Santa gift a couple years before and fiddled with it.

"Where do we stand with the real estate sector, Anna?"

"We got the product letters out last week, and so far follow-up calls are going well. Six appointments: three residential realtors, one title company, a commercial broker, and a home inspector. I'm about a third of the way through the list."

"That's great! Well done. The trades?" Landry turned his attention to Sam.

"Letters went out last week as well. I'm not as far along as Anna with the follow-up calls. I had to handle the lines-of-credit for Murphy-Lewis and The Cannon Group on Thursday and Friday, but I've cleared my calendar today to make headway."

Landry nodded. "Okay. Check in with me at the end of the day and let me know where you are."

He left the two women to go check in with Carl about the HELOC offer they were developing. As soon as he was out of earshot, Sam stuck her tongue out at Anna.

"Show off!"

Anna smiled and stood up. "You better start dialing -- I know I am!"

The two friends laughed again and got to work.

* * * * *

"And you can't get back at night during the week?"

"I'll try, but probably not every night. You know how the retrofit went a couple years ago. Despite all the prep work, things go sideways all the time, and we need to resolve them quickly or the crew is sitting on their asses getting paid time-and-a-half. Plus it's a 60-mile drive. Tough to do twice a day every day, especially when I'll be working twelve hours plus."

Sam was not happy. Anna had moved just slightly -- but still noticeably -- ahead in their work competition. She had the advantage of a mother-in-law who lived a few blocks away from her, so when Anna worked late she had someone besides her husband to press into duty. And Teddy was a salesman, so he had a lot more flexibility in his schedule than John did. Sam couldn't do anything about that, but it still irked her that she was at a disadvantage. She wondered what she might be able to do to negate Anna's edge.

And now John was going to be working in Rochester, an hour or so away. Not only wouldn't he be able to help her out in a pinch -- and she had been calling him in a pinch at least once a week -- he wouldn't be able to take any regular nights either. Shit!

"We will get a nice bonus if we get done on or ahead of schedule, and my part is supposed to be a nine-week job. I'll be able to get down some nights, just not all, and I probably won't know until late in the day if I can make it."

"Is there any way you can be home more?"

"I really wish there was. I'm not at my best when I'm away from you and the girls."

Samantha scoffed. "Well, we kind of need you here too."

"I know. It's nine weeks. And we can do stuff with the kids on both Saturdays and Sundays. I'm going to need my family time. And maybe we can have a Saturday night date too? I'm going to need my wife time too."

"I miss you when you're not here." Sam wrapped her arms around John's neck and put her cheek against his shoulder. "Who's going to keep me organized?"

"You'll do just fine. We can do this. It won't be easy for any of us, but it's just for nine weeks."

It definitely wasn't easy.

Sam told both Landry and Anna about John's work situation and that she wouldn't have as much flexibility to work either early or late. Anna was super supportive as expected -- she was, after all, a woman and a mother in the workforce -- and while Landry said the right things his reserve was just enough to communicate a little disappointment.

The girls were oblivious at first, but after a couple weeks they started testing boundaries with Sam. John was getting home about every other night, but it wasn't regular, and so the mornings and evenings were a bit unsettled. He wasn't reliably there to back up Sam like he always did. Melissa was the first to test her, and it was her way to openly challenge Sam. Voices were raised, Melissa was punished, and then she and Sam reconciled. It was sweet, it was predictable, but it was exhausting.

Margot was the passive-aggressive child, so she would just ignore what Sam asked. Then directed. Then ordered. Voices were raised, Margot was punished, and then she and Sam reconciled. More exhaustion. Thankfully Monica was her usual sprite. Though still exhausting.

So Sam wasn't in the best of spirits on those nights John made it home. He still liked being home -- he couldn't sleep worth a damn when he slept alone -- but it wasn't quite the refuge he had come to expect.

"Will you be home tomorrow night? I could really use some help, John."

He sighed. He did feel guilty, and he could see the toll it was taking on Sam. "I don't know. You're doing a great job. I wish I could do more. Foot massage?"

She gave him a tired smile and giggled softly. "You're on, buster. Let's go to the bedroom though. You know what those do to me."

He chuckled. It was even money whether his foot massage would rile her up for sex or drop her into a deep and satisfying sleep. He was really hoping for sex though. They'd been getting a lovemaking session in after their Saturday dates, and while their sex was never bad lately it lacked the energy that they usually mustered. They were just so tired.

Sam came out of the bathroom in her baby-blue tap pants and white tank top. John savored her loose-limbed grace as she moved to the bed and laid down with her head on her pillows. He'd changed into track pants and a t-shirt when he got home, so he followed to her side of the bed and sat at her feet. Taking one elegant foot, he slowly tugged on each toe, then began pushing his thumbs into the sole of her foot. He used all of his fingers on the top of her foot, gently but with purpose, then softly squeezed her Achilles tendon between a thumb and forefinger, running them up and down the cord. Sam started with small moans but got louder when his thumbs returned to her foot's arch. He spent ten minutes on her first foot, then repeated everything on the other foot. And sure enough, when he had finished with the second foot she was breathing evenly, with a little soft snore at the start of her exhale.

John smiled at her. Well, she'd earned her rest. He got her under the covers and turned off the lamp, but not before watching her sleep for a minute or so. He just adored her.

* * * * *

"How's the best-looking commercial banking team in the state this fine morning?"

They were gathered around the coffee pot again.

Anna laughed. "Uh-oh, Sam, I think he's going to give us more work!"

"Why else would he be buttering us up?" Sam replied with a smile.

"Not true! Can't a guy make an honest observation without having his motives questioned?"

"You forget that we know you. You're just trying to figure out how you can squeeze more work out of us!"

Landry shook his head with fake exasperation. "You guys are the best workers I have. It's just a bonus that you're also so beautiful. Now I just have to figure out how to get you to ditch your husbands and kids, and I can move you in here 24/7...."

They returned to their offices. Sam appreciated that Landry was the kind of boss you could kid around with. He was serious about his work -- more serious than anyone she had met before -- but he didn't take himself seriously, and he didn't mind teasing his workers or, more importantly, being teased in kind.

Sam had a couple appointments during the morning, but she was still able to make a number of calls to electrical contractors she was following up with for their banking needs. She found most of the tradespeople in their area were one- and two-person entities with very simple banking needs, but she'd had success with business checking accounts and a couple of small lines of credit. Even better, she referred eight of her contractors to the consumer banking team for a variety of personal accounts, auto loans, and one home refinance. Anna was making bigger deals, but Sam was making up ground with volume. She wondered if Landry had understood that when he steered her towards the contractors vertical when they were dividing up the markets.

Anna poked her head into Sam's office a little before noon. "Got time for Maggie's?"

Sam smiled. "Actually, I do. But let's make it a short lunch -- I'm in a good rhythm."

The women ordered salads and then found the quietest table they could.

"So you're making progress?" Anna asked.

"I am. I know I'm not the most organized person in the world, but once I get things set, I'm pretty tenacious at following through. How's your list coming along?"

"Good. I think I've nearly exhausted brokers and title companies, and there aren't many inspectors left to call either. Landry seems happy with what I've done so far, so I'm hoping he'll let me move on to another sector. It's hard to know what he thinks sometimes."

"Think so? I find that he says exactly what he's thinking. Well, you're doing some amazing things with your list, and I'm sure Landry is noticing too. He's really smart, and he knows what he's doing. And he seems to like the way you look." Sam grinned at her friend and bounced her eyebrows twice.

"Hey, you're part of the best-looking commercial banking team in the state! He's such a flirt."

"He's pretty handsome too. Such a difference from Phil. Night and day."

"No kidding. He's smart, he's funny, and he's hot. Too bad we're married!"

The friends ate quietly for a moment. Then Sam asked, "Do you think he's the kind of guy who would go after a married woman?"

Anna looked shocked. "You're not interested in Landry that way, are you, Sam?"

Sam blushed. "Oh! No! No, not at all. It's just that he's so successful. I can't imagine him doing anything like that to mess it up."

"You better not be talking like that around John," Anna said with a teasing smile. "I'm pretty sure he doesn't want to share."

Sam blushed more deeply. "It takes two to tango, and even I was interested I don't think Landry would be. A guy like that has to have his pick of single women. Why on earth would he be interested in an old married gal like me?"

"Don't sell yourself short, Sam."