"Once the water was running and Knockout felt Giganta couldn't hear, she turned to Jordan and pulled off her small 'mask', revealing a pair of sparkli...ng blue eyes. "I've known her a long time, and I've never seen her open up and show affection to any person or anything like that, Jordan. You're really something special, girl."From the shower, Giganta's voice called out over the noise of the water. "Find some fresh towels out there, damn it! If we get a move on Knockout, we can still make Las. The president’s secretary announced her and she was shown into the office. He stood, smiling at her, as she entered. ‘Catherine, thank you for coming so quickly. I wanted to talk to you personally before this got to the school paper, which will be tonight.’ ‘Sir?’ she said, mystified. He smiled again and said, his smile broadening: ‘You’ve been granted tenure by the Board and awarded the title of full professor, with entitlement to the salary that pertains.’ ‘Oh,’ she said in a tiny voice.. Orlie made it all sound like a trip to Disney World, but at least she wasn't patronizing or condescending to any degree. It was a professional job of introducing a speaker as positively as possible.I stood up, arranged my notes on the little rostrum, and got started. "Y'know," I began, "Brian Roberts was going to talk to you about life as a major-league ballplayer. But he couldn't be here today. Brian's spent more time in the shower at Camden Yards than I've spent in the majors for my whole. I'd probably have done the same if I'd been in your shoes. I'm rushing to get the place ready for the next visitors: they're regulars. Two women from Oxford. Always come down this time of year." Oxford, you say? I was at Oxford. What do these women look like?" One's tall and gangly with brown hair. The other's smaller and younger, with blonde hair. My Gareth reckons they're lessers."Tom idly lifted one of the empty wine glasses from the table and detected the smell of brandy."So where was it.
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