James Taylor Pritchett, "JT" to his friends and fans, nursed his drink as he settled his recently-pounded butt in his bar stool. His six-four frame ached all over, though he did his best to hide the pain from his teammates partying happily and the public walking by. Only three hours earlier, JT had led the New Orleans Saints to a come-from-behind win over the arch-rival Atlanta Falcons. The Falcons new defensive end, Alabama's fair-haired boy just a college championship season before, had slammed him into the turf all afternoon. A double team by his loyal left tackle and center had allowed him to sneak in the game-winning touchdown.
All New Orleans loves a party when the Saints win. This night was no exception. JT was sedate, though he had once partied as hard as any ballplayer after a victory. But a stupid incident had clouded his past. It had almost ended his career.
Three seasons before, the Saints, unbeaten in their first ten games, had upset the heavily-favored New England Patriots in a shoot out at the Mercedes-Benz Super Dome. JT was riding high as he and his teammates went to a local gentlemen's club to celebrate. A room was set aside in the back of the dimly-lit place building for the players to play with the manager's "best girls." The Saints in the room passed one girl amongst each other, JT being the last to pound her hard and deep. The girl, wasted and scared, managed to get away. The next day she told the Times Picayune what had happened. She also revealed that she was only 16.
Angry from the embarrassment, the Saints ownership waived the least necessary players. They made sure that they were blackballed from the League. But JT got off with a fine and suspension. The Saints hoped to trade him to Jacksonville, the Siberia of the League, for a pack of draft picks. But the Jaguars did not want his huge contract and the baggage that came with it.
With no choice, JT remained loyal to the Saints, accepting any community service chore sent his way. No one ever saw him near a woman, even his own mother, a season ticket holder. As long as the Saints won, JT was left alone. But whenever they lost he got an earful every time he went out in public. Even his jersey, once a hot commodity in New Orleans, hit the discount racks as soon as the season started.
But after three years, JT got a reprieve. Winning made fans forget past indiscretions. They left him to have his postgame dinner or drinks in peace. While JT was still "Jimmy Taboo" in the hearts and minds of the cynics, the most faithful knew that he had to play at his best for the Saints to win a Super Bowl.
JT looked around the opulent room. Well-dressed women, all sizes and shapes, were everywhere, some with a date, most not. Tall, tanned, with which dark hair and a well-groomed mustache, JT had fancied himself a ladies man until that fateful day three years ago. Apparently, most of the women who most recently crossed his path disagreed. They walked by, not bothering to make eye contact. But one man did.
"JT? JT Pritchett?" The tall but heavy-set man dressed in a light gray suit and white open-collared shirt carried a long-neck beer as if he was swinging a bowling pin. "That really you?"
JT smiled weakly and nodded. Had it really come down to this? He reached into his jacket pocket, figuring that the man wanted an autograph.
"No, no, no," the man said in a local drawl, raising his hand. "I got lots of Saints swag at home. I just want to introduce you to my wife. She's a huge fan of your's. I can't get her to shut up talking about you."
"I'm really, sorry, uhhh Mr."
"Maran, Billy Maran."
"Well, Billy, I'm sorry. I'm sure she'll come around after the season's over," JT said. He smiled and turned back to his drink.
Billy reached for JT's non-throwing shoulder. "Um, I don't think so, Mr. Pritchett. She'd get your face tattooed to her titties if I let her."
JT tried to release Billy's tight grip. It took more effort than he expected, but he got the man's huge hand away. "Look, Billy. I'm sorry about you and your wife. Now can you please go away?"
"I'm afraid I can't do that." Billy actually had a serious grin on his face, as if he believed that he could actually abduct the Crescent City's hero of the day.
"What do you mean?" asked JT, raising an eyebrow and closing his fist. But he hid it below the bar. The very last thing that he wanted to do was get into a fight with a fan.
"JT, if you don't fuck my wife, I'll never here the end of it. All it'll be is 'JT this' and 'JT that' when we're asleep. But if I fulfill her fantasy I'm golden."
"Billy, I'm sorry. Now would you please go?" JT signaled for the bartender to call security.
"Fuck you, Pritchett. And fuck the horse you rode in on." Billy glared at the bouncer who had arrived on the scene, but he did not put up a fight. He turned towards the door and left, taking a gulp of his longneck before tossing the bottle outside the front door.
"Whatever," JT mumbled for no one to hear as he saw Billy leave unescorted.
JT finished his drink and walked out of the bar. He never liked to have valets drive his car. The barkeeps and restauranteurs, valuing his business, accommodated him with a reserved parking spot. The hotels loved this. It was cheap marketing. JT's Corvette was the most recognized car in New Orleans. It was a special edition that he'd picked up off the factory floor in Kentucky and shook out on the journey home. Usually the car was under lights, no one near it. Not a soul in New Orleans would dare to steal JT Pritchett's car. He'd have the wrath of a city and its football team to deal with.
But this time a woman in a low-cut dress was sitting on the trunk of his Corvette. She looked middle-aged, streaks of gray through her short black hair. But she had the figure of a much younger woman.
"JT, I apologize for Billy," she said. "He should have never bothered you like that."
JT's eyelids lifted. "You mean, you're his wife?"
"Sister in law, actually. I'm Tammy. Cammy's at my place. Billy won't let her anywhere near here." She showed him a picture of two women together, arms around each other, wearing identical floral print sundresses. It would have been too easy for JT, or anyone else, to mistake one for the other.
"Are you two.."
"Ummm, yes. Twins."
"Identical?"