Future Perfect — Joan Smith

PAST IMPERFECT

Dolores Parker had never really believed that football hero Dutch Kampen could be serious about an egghead like her, so for years she'd tried to think of their college romance as a lighthearted diversion.

Things hadn't changed much when Dolores returned to her alma mater as an English professor and ran into football coach Dutch. Together, the "grind" and the "jock" were still a mixed metaphor. But despite his tendency to split infinitives, Dutch was still an irresistible hunk.

The only trouble was, how could such an imperfect past lead to a perfect future?