With her father on one side and Herbert on the other, Pearl stood in reality as she felt in her mind. She smiled, here and there. Her smiles were so often forced lately. She did her best, as did I, making the most of my afternoon off.
When the women took the court, I traveled to another world, as much as I had when my father and I boarded that ship. Any thought of men, of loving them, faded like the first dreams of slumber. They were women like me, strong women, women with muscles and flesh who were proud of them. They conquered that court as any soldier had ever taken a battlefield.
My head twisted back and forth, up and down, following the ball from one side of the net to the other, from the court to Pearl in the stands. Our eyes met as often as the racquets met the ball. In her face,
