Disclaimer: The following is a work of fiction. If you are
offended by graphic descriptions of homosexual acts, go
somewhere else.
Copyright c 2001 by Orrin C. Rush. All rights reserved.
Neither this story nor any parts of it may be distributed
electronically or in any other manner without the express,
written consent of the author.
This is a work of fiction, any resemblance of the characters
to anyone living or dead is pure coincidence and not
intended. They are all products of the author's imagination.
THE LIFEGUARD
Chapter 40
Four rather dejected young men were led into my office. Eric
had demanded that I sit in, and since my office was bigger,
that's where we had waited for them.
"We come on bended knee," Greg, spokesman for the group,
said. "We're desperate, and you, Eric, are our only hope. I
don't want to sound too dramatic, but we're in a life and
death situation here. Micron's future is at stake."
This sounded serious. I got interested real fast because
Lundborg Rush's future could be in jeapordy too.
"Let me fill you in with some background so you'll understand
what's going on," Greg continued. "A couple of weeks ago, we
heard a rumor about something really hot floating around. It
was rumored to be a 'breakthrough' platform that was so
revolutionary that it would open the door to not just the
next generation of software but be a quantum leap ahead.
"Just like everybody else who heard about it, we pooh poohed
it as being too good to be true. Then, one of our
programmers got hold of a copy, but that's another story. We
looked at it, and it WAS true. Using it, the possibilities
are endless, and whoever owns that technology is going to
control the software industry for years to come.
"The copy we had came off the Internet, and we were able to
track down the source. Eventually we found the kid who
developed it. Jerry jumped on the phone and called him, set
up an appointment and flew out to talk to him."
At this point, Jerry jumped in. "Zip, zero, zilch. That's
what I got. He'd barely talk to me, and I made the mistake
of offering him big bucks for it. He threw me out."
"That's where we stand," Greg said. "Now we hear that all
the 'Big Boys' are after him - IBM, Microsoft and everybody
else."
There was a long pause, then Greg continued. "Eric, you're
the only person we know who can find out what the kid wants
and give it to him. The sky's the limit."
All eyes were on Eric, including mine. The wheels were
turning, that was obvious. He didn't make us wait long.
"I'd have to know a whole lot more before I jumped in," he
said.
"We'll tell you everything we know," Jerry promised, "and
there's one more thing. We'll give you $50 million just to
try, and if you're successful, we'll give you $200 million
worth of our stock. If we have that kid's technology, our
stock'll hit outer space."
"I'm not a miracle worker," Eric protested. "Dave would also
have to agree to my taking this on, it could take a lot of
time and we've got a lot going on right now."
"When do you think you could give us an answer?" Greg asked.
"Give me a couple of hours to think about it and talk to
Dave. I think I could give you an answer later this
afternoon."
"We'll be at the Marina Hotel waiting," Greg said. "And
praying."
"Don't be a drama queen, Greg," Eric chuckled. "I'll think
it over and let you know."
"Fair enough," he said. "Call us."
"Well, what do you think?" Eric asked as the door closed.
"I think they've put you in a very difficult position."
"How's that?"
"Without saying anything about it, they realize that you have
a vested interest in their success. Indirectly, Lundborg
Rush could be affected, then they dangle that big carrot at
you."
"I only own 30% of LR, but I sure as hell wouldn't do
anything to jeopardize your family's interest. They're using
that too, maybe not intentionally, but it's there."
"Don't even consider that," I told him seriously, "we'll
survive, and so will LR, even if we lost Micron."
"What do you think I should do?"
"Whatever you feel comfortable with," I told him.
"You're no help, goddamit," he grinned.
"I didn't intend to be, you're a big boy, you make the call.
Don't worry about taking time off, either, I can watch the
store for both of us."
"I figured that," he said. "I don't need the money, that's
for sure, and I don't want to fall on my face either. Shit,
this isn't getting any easier."
"Take your time. You want lunch?" he nodded, then got up
and nabbed a pad off the conference table.
I went out and had Nancy order lunch for us, then detoured to
the mensroom. He was scribbling like crazy when I wandered
back in. I didn't disturb him.
"OK," he said. "I'm going to give it a try, but only if I
have a fighting chance to succeed, and I'll only know that
after I get more information. I also won't take any front
money. If I'm successful, they can give me the whole amount
in stock, plus expenses. What do you think?"
"You have my full support," I told him.
"I already knew that!" he said with a huge grin. "My love,"
he said, putting his arm around me, "I know I can always
depend on you."
During lunch, I was quiet, letting him think out loud. "I
was going to give them a conditional 'yes', but that's
bullshit. I know I'm going to give it a try," he said.
"Hell, I don't even know if I can get to the kid," he
continued, "but I'm starting to get some devious ideas."
We dawdled over lunch, and when we'd cleaned up the mess,
Eric asked Nancy to call the boys and ask them to come back
over.
"I'm enjoying this feeling of power!" he said.
"I'm going to enjoy that feeling tonight," I promised him.
Four uncertain men, each worth untold billions of dollars,
marched in like a bunch of little boys going to the
Principal's office. Under other circumstances, it would have
been comical.
Eric led them to the conference table, seating them on one
side and he and I on the other.
We sat. And stared. I tried to watch both them and Eric.
"OK guys, I'm going to give it a try," he said.
All four jumped up, high fiving each other like teenagers.
"I feel like giving you a kiss!" Ted exclaimed, the first
we'd heard from him.
"Better not while Dave's here. He gets mean," Eric teased.
"Here's what I propose," Eric continued. "First, no front
money for trying. If I get the job done, I'll gladly accept
the full amount in stock. If I don't, I'm out some time, and
you guys don't have to pay me for it. I will, though, expect
you to pick up my expense tab."
"We'll pick it up regardless," Jerry said.
"Next, I'm going to need every bit of information you have
about this young man. Let's not call him 'the kid' anymore.
What's his name, where does he live, phone numbers, all that."
Jerry and Greg had their briefcases on the table, fishing
through them.
"Here's background data," Greg said, "Jerry's got notes on his
meeting with him."
Eric leaned over to me and asked "Can I use Bob?" I nodded.
"Next," he said to the group, "has this young man taken all
the necessary precautions to protect his rights to this
thing?"
"He's a smart little fucker," Greg said, "he's covered his ass
thoroughly and completely. It's his."
"Good," Eric said. "Then we only have one person to deal
with. Next, I may need somebody who understands this
'platform' and can be here to coach me. They'd have to be
able to explain things to me in layman's terms and also speak
the lingo of our young man. Do you have anybody like that
available."
"We'll have somebody here whenever you want them."
Eric continued with questions and requests for another couple
of hours. Where he came up with some of this stuff was
baffling to me. Eric finally finished, and promised them
progress reports.
"Now, the biggest question of all. How high can I go?" he
asked them.
Without hesitation, Greg answered. "Our board has authorized
us to go up to a billion, stock or cash. We'll go higher if
necessary, but we'd have to dig."
"That gives me something to work with," Eric agreed. "That's
all I have."
"I think I'm going to find a quiet bar and get drunk," Ted
said. "Anybody care to join me?"
"No you're not," I told him. "You're coming out to our house
for dinner, and you can get as drunk as you want there.
We'll have a car pick you up at six... and drive you back
later."
"I bow to reason," Ted said. "Thanks, Dave."
After hugs and handshakes, they paraded out. Tired, but in a
lot better spirits.
"Want me to call Bob for you?" I asked.
"I'd appreciate that."
Bob, Metalco's head of Security took only a few minutes to
get to my office. "Eric's got a project for you," I told him.
"This isn't for Metalco," Eric explained, "so could you keep
track of all hours and expenses so the Company can be
reimbursed?"
I left them alone. I didn't need to know what Eric was
looking for. He'd tell me later, anyway. I called to warn
Mary that we were bringing four guests home for dinner, and
arranged transportation for the Micron four.
On the way home, Eric was quiet, thinking. I didn't bother
him.
"How old do I look? Honestly," he asked, startling me.
After glancing at him and thinking a minute, "Early 20's, I'd
say. Why?"
"I'm wondering if I could pass as a College student. Just
getting to talk to this guy could be the hardest part. It's
not like a business situation where you make an appointment
or show up at his office."
"I see what you're getting at," I said.
"The direct approach didn't work for Jerry, so I'm looking at
other angles. Do you really think I can pull this off?"
"If anybody can, you can. You're a real charmer, you know."
"I'm not gonna seduce him, for chrissakes," he laughed.
"That's not what I meant," I said. "If you can get to him,
I'm sure you can find out what he wants and give it to him.
But, he's still an unknown quantity."
"If Bob is successful, I'll know a whole lot more."
"You can count on him. If it's there, he'll find it."
Walking into the house, I warned him. "We don't have time
now, but I fully intend to collect on that 'power' thing
later." He just grinned at me.
The Micron boys were a lot more cheerful when they arrived.
The burden had been shifted, and they acted like success was
a certainty.
The cocktail 'hour' turned into several, while they expounded
on the possibilities of what they could do once they had the
new platform. I didn't understand any of the technical
implications, and I don't think Eric did either, but from a
practical, business standpoint, the potential was
unimaginable.
While Eric and I sipped, the four of them gulped. By the
time we got to dinner, they were pretty unsteady on their
feet. Soon after, we packed them up and sent them back to
their hotel.
"It's really, really late," Eric giggled as he snuggled up to
me. "I don't think I could do you justice."
"I agree," I told him. "I got off on watching you in action
today. You handled yourself beautifully, I'm impressed! You
had them in the palm of your hand but you didn't abuse your
position, in fact, you gave them something. That's how real
power is exercised."
"Now you're getting me all hot and bothered," he chuckled.
"That was my intention," I laughed, "but I meant every word I
said."
The kisses were gentle but passionate. That's about all it
took, and he was inside me. Connected, we became one, the
waves sweeping over us. The physical sensations were
secondary, the oneness I felt with this man inside me were
primary, bring me to the edge, then over, again and again.
"Bob just brought me a report," Eric said when he walked into
my office. "Want details or a summary?"
"Do I really need to know any of this? It's your baby."
"Hell yes," he grinned. "I get my best ideas when I'm
thinking out loud with you. I promise to stick to the
basics."
"OK, let's hear it," I said.
"His name's Spencer Young III, he's 19, lives in Boise, Idaho
with his parents. Dad's an exec at Boise Cascade Corp., good
middle class Mormon family. He's a Sophomore at Albertson
College in Caldwell, about 40 miles from Boise, majoring in
Computer Science, not surprisingly, and minoring in Business.
"He lives on campus during the week but goes home most
weekends. Kind of a loner, few friends, and active in the
church. He's a straight A student, and Bob was even able to
get pictures of him. That's about all I have to work with."
"It's a start," I told him, and looked at the pictures Eric
handed me. There were long shots and closeups, showing a
rather nondescript young man, somebody you'd never notice in
a crowd. It was hard to tell his height because he was alone
in all the pictures without any background to give
perspective.
"What's next?" I asked.
"From Bob's report, it doesn't seem like he's under seige
from the other software companies, so I might be able to
approach him informally. I think I'm going to go up Monday,
look over the situation, and go from there. I'll check out
the campus, and having the pictures, I'll be able to
recognize him if I run into him. I'll go dressed in my
"collegiate" getup and try to blend in."
"Might work," I said, thinking to myself that there was no
way, even with the current baggy style of clothes, that he'd
"blend in". With his body and looks, he'd get noticed, but I
didn't want to discourage him and kept my mouth shut. It
might work.
"I've got a million scenarios running around in my head about
what I'll do when I corner him, and I'll probably come up
with a lot more. I'm beginning to wonder if all this
thinking is a waste of time, and to just ad lib it when the
time comes. The main thing is not to come across as
threatening like Jerry probably did.
"Bob's going to have another report by the weekend, and
Micron's 'whiz' will be here to coach me on Saturday. Guess
I'll be tied up all weekend. I've asked the 'whiz' to stay
with us, is that OK?"
"Sure," I chuckled. "Pick his brains."
"What's going on with you guys?" Tina asked. "Haven't seen
much of you this week and when I have, you're in another
world."
"Eric's doing a 'Special Project' for Micron," I explained.
"It's pretty intense." This seemed to satisfy her.
When I saw her, Annie was more demanding. "What's Eric up
to?" she asked. "He acts like he's someplace else."
I told her about the project he'd undertaken but gave no
details.
"Doesn't he have enough to do with LR, the Development
Company, and everything else?"
"This is something that they feel he's the man for. It's
really, really big, and he'll make a bundle if he can pull it
off. It won't take long, and he has my blessings to do it."
"Another merger?" she asked.
"Not really, something a lot touchier. How's Andy?" I asked,
trying to get the subject changed.
"He's fine, but will you tell me what this's all about later?"
"Eric will, once it's over," I promised. "Now, tell me about
Andy. You put him in a rather awkward position when he was
here."
"I didn't mean to, and I apologized to him. I wasn't
thinking."
"He handled it nicely. I was impressed," I told her.
"He's such a sweet guy. Kinda naive, though, but I'll change
that!"
"Kinda cute, too," I commented.
"DAD!!!"
"I can look, I'm not dead yet. Look only, though."
"OK then, but you snatched Eric right out from under my nose."
"You forget, my dear, Eric 'snatched' me!"
"Yeah, that's right."
"Is Andy meeting us in Dallas or is he coming here first?" I
asked.
"I'm meeting him there a day before the rest of you guys get
in. We've got several hotels there that I want to look over,
and I'd like a little time with Andy by myself."
"Be good!" I warned.
"I intend to be excellent!" she shot back.
"You shock me, girl!" I laughed.
It was a very quiet weekend. Eric was closeted in his study
with "the Whiz" and I puttered around and did a little
reading.
"The Stalker," the name I'd given Eric, was on his way Monday
morning. He had no idea when he'd be back.
He called that evening. Nothing much to report. He'd found
the campus and looked it over, even got a glimpse of his
quarry between classes.
Nothing for me to do but wait.
Tuesday night's call was different. "Contact!" he screamed
through the phone. He was excited, that was obvious. "I met
him today and we're talking. He knows who I am and why I'm
here. He's like a little boy looking for a 'big brother'.
It's way too early to tell what's going to happen, but I'm
sure as hell a lot more optomistic today than I was
yesterday. I'm going to save the whole story for when I get
home in a day or two."
"Allright!" I managed to get in.
"I'm seeing him again tomorrow. This is NOT going to happen
overnight, but I'm pretty sure I have the inside track. I
don't know what approach the other guys took, but they scared
him half to death."
"What's he like?" I asked.
"Pretty immature for his age, I think. From Bob's reports
and seeing him, I'd guess he's led a rather sheltered life.
I've been completely honest with him, and plan to let him
lead the way. He's a real lonely kid looking for a friend.
I want to become that friend."
"That makes sense," I said. "What have you told Micron?"
"Nothing yet, and I don't think I'm going to say anything
until after tomorrow's meeting. I'll have a much better idea
where we're heading by then."
We talked some more, drifting to other subjects, mainly us.
The next day, he called in midafternoon. "I'm on my way
home," he said. "I'll tell you everything when I get there."
"Don't you want me to send a plane for you?" I asked.
"That'll take too long. I'm at the airport and a United
flight is taking off in a few minutes. Will you pick me up?
Don't come in, I'll meet you at the curb at around 5:30."
"I'll be there, babe," I told him.
Eric was cheerful when he hopped into the car, but not
anywhere near as excited as I expected him to be.
"Problems?" I asked after a kiss.
"Not really," he smiled at me. "If anybody's going to get
Spence's stuff, it'll be Micron. At least that's where we
stand at the moment."
"Something's bothering you, I can tell."
"Can't hide anything from you, can I?"
"Nope."
"Let's wait until we get home. I'll tell you all about it."
We talked about other things on the ride home. He was
obviously deeply troubled about something, but I'd wait until
he was ready to tell me about it.
We sat in the den with a drink, my arm around him. "I'm
starting to feel pretty bad about what I'm doing," he
started. "I'm trying to manipulate this poor kid, and I
don't feel too good about it."
I gave him a squeeze but didn't say anything.
"Let me start at the beginning so you can see where I'm
coming from," he continued. "Monday, I got familiar with the
campus. It's pretty small, so it wasn't hard to find my way
around. Yesterday, having his class schedule, I was able to
catch him on his way to the dining room. I followed him in.
The place was packed, but he found an empty table. I went
through the line and got lunch, then wandered around looking
for a place to sit, ending up at his table.
"I asked if I could join him, he nodded and I sat, introducing
myself. He was shy and really wary. I didn't attempt to
talk to him. I noticed that he was watching me pretty
closely, though. Eventually, he said 'You're not a student
here, are you?' I shook my head and told him I was there on
business.
"He thought about that for a while, then asked 'Are you THE
Eric Lundborg, the one the papers call the 'Wall Street Whiz
Kid?' I admitted I was. Then he wanted to know what I was
doing there. I told him I was looking for a guy named
Spencer Young, totally innocently. You should have seen his
face. I don't know whether he was scared or elated.
"It took him a while, but he finally asked what I wanted to
see this Spencer Young about. I told him it was a private
matter, and started to get up. 'I'm Spencer Young,' he
admitted, 'what do you want to talk to me about?'
"I sat back down. 'Are you really?' I asked him. 'I've got
ID,' he said reaching for his wallet. 'That's OK,' I said.
"If you're really Spencer Young, you'll know why I want to
talk to you.' 'That program I wrote?' I nodded.
"He wanted to know why I wanted it. I told him that if he'd
read about me, he'd know I worked for Micron. I didn't
mention that that was past tense.
"He seemed to be struggling with the decision of whether to
dismiss me, or to talk. 'I'll talk to you if you don't try
to bully me,' he said. 'I don't use those tactics,' I
assured him. 'I'd just like to talk about the possibilities
with you.'
"I think he believed me, and suggested that we meet there
again today. I waited for him by the dining room. He
actually seemed happy to see me. We got our lunch which, by
the way, was perfectly awful. I don't know how those poor
kids survive on that slop! Anyway, he wanted to hear all
about the mergers I'd worked on. I told him about a few of
them, giving him all the gory details. I actually think
Spence is more interested in business than he is in computers.
"When it was time for him to go back to class, he asked if
I'd be around this weekend, and if I'd be interested in going
fishing with him. I accepted his invitation, and he told me
not to worry about his program. He wouldn't even talk to
anyone else until he heard everything I had to say. We'd
talk about it while we were fishing.
"Well, there you have it," Eric finished.
I thought about it for a few minutes. "Where's the problem?"
I asked.
"You haven't met this kid. He's so damned nice, so
innocent. I feel like I'm leading him down the garden path,
like I'm using him."
"Helping make him a billionaire isn't what I'd call 'using'
him."
"That kind of money would ruin him. At least now. He isn't
mature enough to handle it. He trusts me, and in less than
two hours with him, I've grown to like the kid."
"Better you than those other vultures," I told him. "At
least you're not trying to steal what he has."
"I'm still uncomfortable. Maybe after Sunday, I'll feel
differently."
"Have you said anything to Micron yet?"
"Oh shit, I forgot. I'll go call Greg right now. Come on
over, I'll put it on speaker."
Before he could get up, I grabbed him and pulled him around
to face me. "Before you call them, I have something to say,"
I told him, very seriously. "First of all, the more I see of
you, and how you think, the more I love you. I understand
your concern for Spencer, and love you because you care.
You're a damned fine human being, and I know you'll find a
way to give everybody what they want. Now cheer up, dammit,
and go give them the good news."
Then I pulled him to me. After a few minutes, we disengaged
and he was smiling.
"I'll make it work," he said simply and headed for the phone.
"I'm a city boy, I've never drowned a worm in my life," Eric
wailed.
"Let him be your big brother for a change and have him teach
you," I suggested. "It'll make him feel good."
"He'll have to. I don't know a damned thing about it."
It was a day trip. Eric left early Sunday morning and came
home late that night. His spirits were vastly improved.
"He's a sharp little fucker," he said laughing. "That
doesn't mean he's not innocent and naive about everything
other than numbers."
"He's got to be brilliant to have come up with whatever it
was that he did," I commented.
"He claims it was an accident," Eric chuckled. "It might
have been, but I doubt it. I just don't think he realized
what he had until the wolves showed up at his door."
"Well, tell me what happened."
"Spence likes to fish. Says it gives him time to think. We
went out to some lake on the Oregon border, a big reservoir,
where he has a little aluminum boat at the marina. It's a
little boat but he's got a bigass outboard on it. We went
all over that goddam lake, he had to show me all his favorite
spots. We fished for bass and crappie and caught a whole
slew of them. I actually enjoyed it.
"When the fish weren't biting, we talked. Thank God I got
briefed by the "whiz" or I wouldn't have understood a word he
was saying. By now, he has a pretty good idea of what his
idea is worth. He also understands that by itself, it isn't
worth anything, but as a base to other programs, it has
enormous value.
"I tried to kid him into telling me how much the others had
offered him, but he wouldn't give me anything, and insisted
that I put my best offer on the table first. No haggling.
When I told him a billion, stock or cash, I expected some
sort of reaction, but all he said was 'That's about what I
figured it was worth. I'll take stock."
"He hedged, though, wouldn't give me a yes or no answer. He
wants to 'think about it'. I'm just about certain we have a
deal, particularly since he didn't want a bidding war.
"When he got around to telling me about the other offers, you
were right. The rest of them tried to rob him. His best
other offer was $10 million. It wasn't so much the amount of
the other offers that turned him off, but the way they were
presented. They treated him like a kid, just about demanding
that he sign the papers they threw at him. One of the really
biggies even threatened him, telling him that if he didn't
sign with them, they'd see that nobody else would touch him.
"Unfortunately, that guy had assaulted him just before Jerry
showed up, and he was in no mood to talk to anyone. To me,
that's rather understandable. He asked me to give Jerry an
apology for him."
"What's the bottom line, then?" I asked.
"He's going to think about it, and since we're going to
Dallas next weekend, I'm going back up the weekend after
that. He suggested I bring the contracts along which, to me,
is a very good sign."
"How do you feel about the whole thing now?" I asked.
"Much better. He told me a lot about himself and his family.
They're not close, and the only reason he's involved with the
Church is because they demand it. I think he'll be OK, and
I'm not going to get his name on the dotted line and forget
him. He needs a friend, and I intend to be there for him."
"I don't know how you can be such a good businessman and such
a nice guy all at the same time, but you are," I told him.
"I know it's late on the East Coast, but I'd better let Greg
know what's going on."
This time I listened in.
We had one more dance lesson during the week. I felt pretty
confident, and, quite honestly, damned proud of myself.
Maybe this is what Mother had in mind 40 years ago.
We decided to fly to Dallas Friday and come home Sunday. The
party was Saturday night, so that gave us Friday night free.
We left early enough on Friday so that we could take a look
at progress on the new plane.
Everyone was in high spirits. Eric was floating on his
success with Spencer, even though the deal wasn't final yet.
His excitement during the past week had gotten me on a high
too.
Tina was bubbly, Rick was quiet as usual. Even though Rick
had been around us for several months, he was still an
unknown quantity. He always stuck real close to Tina when he
was around us, so neither Eric nor I had had much of an
opportunity to get to know him.
Once we were airborne, Eric went after Rick. It wasn't an
attack, but he separated him from Tina, who came over to talk
to me, and the two of them got to talking. Before long, they
were laughing, seeming to have found common ground.
"Tell Eric 'Thank You'," Tina said softly. "Rick's so shy
that somebody else has to make the first move. I really
think he's still a little intimidated by you two, but that's
only because he doesn't know you."
"Does our being gay bother him?"
"Oh hell no," she answered. "We've talked about it and he
admires both of you for having the guts to be yourselves. He
says that he wishes I'd look at him the way Eric looks at
you," she giggled.
The hotel was waiting for us. There was a two-bedroom suite
for Rick and Andy and another for Annie and Tina. Eric and I
had the Presidential suite, same one we'd had on our last
stay there.
"How long do you think it'll take for them to switch rooms?" I
chuckled to Eric.
A limo was waiting to take us to see the plane. When we got
to the "Completion Center", the plane looked about the same
from the outside, but when we were led inside, progress had
definitely been made.
The interior was a medium brown, the dull finish of the suede
gave the cabin unexpected warmth. "This is the second
version," our guide explained. "Your Designer decided that
the first wallcoverings we installed were too dark, so he had
us replace it with lighter material. By the way," she
continued, "he's really good, and we're going to be sending a
lot of business his way."
None of the seating had been installed, our gal explaining
that they were waiting for FAA approved fabrics. The galley
had been installed at the factory and was awesome, and the
"Crew Quarters" seemed really spacious.
I was more than pleased. Eric was wildly enthusiastic.
"When will you be finished?" he asked.
"The plane was flight tested before we got it, so as soon as
we complete the interior and give the exterior a paint job,
it's yours."
"About when will that be?" he asked.
"Another month, tops," our guide answered.
Back at the hotel, there was a message from Annie to call as
soon as we got in. I called, and she and Andy were on their
way up.
Andy seemed a lot more comfortable, no tie this time.
"I know tomorrow's your anniversary," Annie said, looking at
Eric then at me, "so we're going to celebrate a day early.
We're all taking you out to dinner tonight at our other hotel
here in town."
"That'd be great," Eric said. "No surprises, I hope."
"Nah, just us," Annie answered, but the twinkle in her eye
made me nervous.
We met in the lobby, then out to a waiting limo. At the
other hotel, we took the elevator to the top. Annie's eyes
were sparkling even more than usual, and I started to smell a
rat. When we got off, I was sure that something was up.
Annie turned to Eric and Tina got in front of me.
"The view from up here is so spectacular we want it to hit
you all at once," Annie said, whipping out a scarf. Tina
followed suit, and we both were blindfolded. I knew then
that we'd been had.
We were led forward, seated, then they ripped off the
blindfolds. A cheer went up as I blinked and looked around.
The room was full. Sarah was sitting across the table from
us with an impish grin on her face, Eric's parents were
there, as well as just about all of our closest friends.
Even Claire and Big George and Greg and his wife from New
York.
We both jumped up to go say hello to everyone. It was mostly
male-female couples, but a few male couples too, Jack and
Wayne, Dan and Ted, even Joel and Aaron from Tucson.
Dinner was wonderful, but that wasn't the end of it. I
hadn't noticed the lectern on the side of the room until Bill
got behind it and asked for everybody's attention. "A toast
isn't enough for these two who we all know and love," he
started. "We all have something to say, so I'll start. Dave
and I go back to college days..."
Ohmigawd, it was going to be a "roast".
He told a funny story about an event that I'd totally
forgotten, getting big laughs. Next was Ingrid, Eric's Mom.
Her opening line "I never expected that my daughter-in-law
would have to shave every morning..." set the tone.
The stories were ribald but in good taste. The teasing was
good natured, but nevertheless, both of our faces were red
most of the evening. Claire told about the "dressing"
incident on the cruise ship which got poor Eric really red.
Sarah was last. Her comments were more poignant than
suggestive. It was finally our turn.
Eric went first. He was incredible, responding in kind to
everyone who had spoken, getting more laughs than they had.
"I'm not as quick on my feet as my partner is," I started,
when it was my turn. "It scares me to learn that you all
know us so well." I rattled on a little longer, then grabbed
a glass and proposed a toast "to all our wonderful friends
and particularly to the man who has made my life complete."
"You little shits," I said to Annie and Tina on the way
back. "How long have you been working on this?"
"Quite a while," Tina giggled, "but we had a lot of help,
Claire in particular. She even invited everybody there
tonight to her party tomorrow night. Don't worry," she
added, "There won't be any mention of your anniversary
tomorrow night. Claire has class."
"Did you know anything about this?" I asked Eric when we got
to our room.
"Hell no! I had something else planned," he said, leading me
to the other bedroom. Unlit candles were everywhere. It was
pretty obvious what he'd had in mind.
"Let's not waste it," I suggested. We didn't.
There was a welcoming committee when we arrived at the
Mattison mansion. All the Texas Widows and their husbands
were waiting. When we got out, they went after us like we
were edible. The kids, particularly Rick and Andy looked on
with stunned expressions on their faces.
They weren't ignored by any means, and en masse, we were led
through the house to the "back yard", and watched while they
were all dragged off in different directions. Eric
disappeared and I was left standing with Big George.
"Can I talk to you for a minute, in private?" he asked. No
trace of a drawl, must be serious.
I nodded and he led me back into the house to his book-lined
study. He poured us a drink then we sat.
"Did you get all the Railroad's land when you bought it?" he
asked, still no drawl.
"Sure did," I told him. "That's what we wanted in the first
place. We didn't really care about the Railroad itself."
He let out a long slow whistle. "You got any idea what
you've got?"
"We're learning," I told him. "We've got a pretty good
handle on the developable land, and we're working on the
rest."
"Forget the development land, you've got a helluva lot more
in your other land. There's a couple of guys here tonight
who'd give both their nuts to have a crack at those copper
deposits you've got."
"We haven't gotten that far yet."
"Wanna meet 'em? I wouldn't say anything unless I had your
permission first," he said.
"Why not?" I answered.
Big George rose, "I'll go get 'em."
"Get Eric too," I said. "He's in this as much as I am."
George turned and looked me straight in the eye. "I'm not
surprised, he's one sharp fella. You're a very lucky man,
Dave."
While I waited, I wandered over to the bookshelves. Quite a
collection. Mining and Petroleum texts, a huge selection of
the classics, and over behind the door, some framed
diplomas. Rice, Colorado School of Mines, and an MBA summa
cum laude from Yale. There was a lot more to Big George than
what he let on.
George came back in, followed by Eric and three other men.
He took care of introductions, and we all sat. Eric looked
at me questioningly, I smiled and nodded at him.
"These here fellas," George announced, indicating Eric and
me, "own them Copper deposits over in Arizona that y'all been
droolin over for the past 20 years. Thought I'd introduce
ya." He was folksy again.
The three of them stared at us, assessing us before saying
anything. By introducing all of them at once, George had
given us the advantage. If they all wanted it, as he'd said,
this had the effect of opening an auction. I liked his
methods!
They were concentrating on me, ignoring Eric. "Are they for
sale?" one of them asked.
I glanced at Eric. "Might be, if the price is right," Eric
said, grinning. "We'd like to look at a joint-venture or a
royalty arrangement too."
"You guys ready to talk turkey?" another of them asked.
"Not tonight," I said, laughing. "We came to party."
The meeting was over. The seeds had been sown and they knew
where to find us.
"Goddam, kid," Big George said, throwing his arm around Eric's
shoulder. "You really know how to handle yourself."
We went back outside to the party. Eric hung around long
enough to ask "What the hell was that all about?"
I explained that they were big in the mining game, and Big
George had set them up for us. Eric giggled then suggested
we eat and then dance our asses off.
There were a lot of familiar faces. My hand got crunched so
many times I was afraid it would go limp. Couldn't have that!
How many ways can you do barbecue? Whoever Claire's caterer
was had a helluva imagination and the food was completely
different from the last time.
I saw Sarah and stopped to give her a peck on the cheek. She
was holding court.
I only got glimpses of my family until the dancing started.
They were all anxious to show off their newly acquired
talents. Me too. One of the Widows drug me onto the floor,
and I surprised both of us by melting right in. It was nice
to actually know what I was doing.
When I took a break, my buddy Bubba was chuckling. "Took some
lessons, I see."
"Not willingly!" I answered.
"Them young 'uns run our lives," he chuckled. How true.
One by one, the three copper guys came over to ask for
meetings. I politely asked them to call me at the office to
set one up. We weren't in a rush but evidently they were.
I found Ingrid and Karl. They appeared to be having a good
time. "Was that you I saw on the dance floor?" Ingrid asked.
"Afraid so," I admitted. "Your damned son forced me to take
lessons."
"You seemed to be having fun," she continued.
"I won't admit it to him, but it is a lot of fun," I laughed.
Back in conversation with the Oil Barons, Claire nailed me.
"I saw you!" she said, "Now y'all just have to dance with me."
I dutifully followed her onto the floor. She was good, but I
kept up. She wasn't the only Widow who'd noticed, and I was
traded around until it was time to eat again. With all that
exercise, I was ravenous.
I ran into Eric in the Chuckwagon line and we sat together to
eat. "Having fun?" he asked.
"No, I hate it!" I shot back, but couldn't help but smile.
Eric went back to the dance floor, I looked for Sarah. Her
"court" had thinned out and I was able to talk to her.
"Thank you for coming," I told her.
"I wouldn'tve missed last night for anything," she said.
"Tonight's not bad either. These Texans entertain a little
differently than we do in New York," she laughed. "Didn't
know what I was missing."
"How do you like Andy?" she continued.
"He seems like a nice boy but I haven't had the opportunity
to get to know him yet."
"You'll have that opportunity, trust me!" We both laughed.
"I'm spoiled now," she said. "No more airlines if your offer
still holds."
"Always," I assured her. "Just call."
By noon on Monday, all three of the "Copper guys" had called
to set up appointments. Eric and I had already agreed that
we wouldn't talk to them until we'd conferred with John's
Mining Attorneys and knew more about our options, so meetings
were set well down the road. Eric volunteered to check them
out and the companies they represented.
His meeting with Spence was on Sunday, and Eric was anxious
to get it over with. He repeated his desire to remain
Spence's friend, but once the agreement was signed, the
tension would lessen substantially.
When he left Sunday morning, he was in high spirits, telling
me "I'll see you tonight as a rich man." I kissed him godbye
and waited, praying that everything went as planned.
That evening when he walked through the door I could tell that
something was wrong.
"That little bastard threw me a curve," he roared. "He says
he's in love with me and won't sign unless I sleep with him."
To be continued.
AUTHOR'S NOTE: I thoroughly enjoy hearing from you and
answer all Email. Comments, suggestions and criticism are
all welcome. I also send out an Alert when new chapters are
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