Chapter 37: Conflicts

April, 1985, Chicago, Illinois

On Sunday night, Bethany came to my bed, but because of her restrictions, all we did was cuddle. Kara had graciously given up her Sunday night to Bethany.

On Monday, Bethany went to the UofC library. When I arrived home from class, she told me that she'd talked to Loyola and would be taking a Summer class. She'd also talked to her professor in Madison and arranged to go up on May 7th to make her presentation. After dinner, I told her about my call with Jessica.

"If you want to see her, there isn't much I can do about it, nor do I think I should."

"You know you confuse me," I replied. "You ask me if you lost me, then you ask me to think about asking Kara to marry me. Now you don't object to me seeing Jessica. I think the real question is, did I lose you?"

She smiled, "No. Not even close. Do you think I'm naïve or foolish?"

"Those are the last two words that come to mind when I think about you."

"Good. If this is going to work, then we both have to go into it with our eyes wide open and our hearts fully committed. You and I always have problems when we get too close, and the only way it's going to work is if we are both absolutely sure."

Suddenly something I had been sure about didn't seem so sure. Was Bethany having second thoughts? And if so, what did THAT mean? I took a deep breath to calm myself.

"Sweetheart, are you saying that YOU aren't absolutely sure?"

I braced myself for the answer that I knew was coming.

"Yes," she said. "Is that a surprise?"

Another deep breath.

"It probably shouldn't be," I replied, "but yes, it is a surprise. Can you explain?"

"I thought I just did. Remember what I didn't say."

"What you didn't say?"

"I didn't say that I didn't want to marry you," Bethany smiled. "I very much do."

I nodded. I understood exactly. We were on the same page.

"Believe it or not, Sweetheart, I agree with you," I said.

"I do believe it. That's been the issue since the very first time you called me that. You weren't completely sure then. You aren't completely sure now. You would love to marry me. You would love BEING married to me. But you aren't completely sure that you SHOULD be married to me."

"Which you've known all along, because I certainly haven't hidden THAT from you or anyone else."

"No, you haven't," she said with a smile. "And yet, you've stuck it out through everything that happened with me."

"I have," I said with a nod. "And maybe we'll stop being star-cross'd loves and make it work."

"From forth the fatal loins of these two foes, A pair of star-cross'd lovers take their life," Bethany said.

"Romeo and Juliet!" I chuckled. "But this better not turn out the same way! Lasting three days and ending in six deaths!"

"I promise it won't," Bethany giggled. "Do you mind if I talk to Kara this evening?"

"Not at all. That's what I told you before."

I went to karate, and then after I came home and did my homework, Bethany joined me in bed again. She didn't say anything about her conversation with Kara, and I didn't ask. Bethany and I were on the same page; but I wasn't sure which page it was.

On Tuesday at work, Scott called me into his office to do my final evaluation, which, as I'd expected, was excellent. I had let him know I was going to need to finish my internship a bit early due to the Washington trip and my obligation to Bethany, and he'd agreed to do the evaluation earlier than it normally would have been done.

After that was over, he leaned forward and took a breath and let it out slowly.

"You've put me in something of a pickle. Your offer to sit on your board made signing this," he held up the form, "a conflict of interest. That creates a really sticky problem. You put Doctor Bauer in the same pickle because he has to sign off on your credit."

I sighed, "Well, I've created a world-class mess, haven't I?"

"Yes. Doctor Bauer and Dean Stauffer talked about it, and the Dean will sign-off for the University. That won't be an issue. You don't have a class with Doctor Bauer this semester. If you did, you'd be risking expulsion for attempting to influence your grade."

"But I didn't!" I gasped in shock.

"Your intent wouldn't matter in this case. You acted without thinking. The thing is, even asking us after the evaluation was signed and approved wouldn't have helped — it could still be seen as a quid pro quo."

"So, what are you going to do?" I asked.

"Let's go see Bill Howsman," he said.

Bill Howsman was the managing partner of Nuvatec and Scott's boss. Scott got up, and I followed him to Mr. Howsman's office.

"Good afternoon, Steve," he said. "Have a seat."

"Thank you, Mr. Howsman."

"Nobody calls me that!" he smiled. "I go by Bill. Let's see if we can get you out of the little mess that you've created."

"I'd like that," I said.

"I was sure that you would! What I've done is collect appraisals from the project leaders for each of the projects you've worked on, as well as evaluations from the other three managers. I believe, after talking to the Dean, the Chancellor, and the university's counsel, that my signature, with all of these evaluations, will protect everyone involved. There's one important thing, though. You'll need to find other board members, at least for the short term. Both Scott and Doctor Bauer have to decline. That's straight from the university's counsel."

"That makes sense. I made a foolish mistake."

"Your heart was in the right place," Bill said. "It really was. And you were trying to do the right thing for your company. You just failed to look at it the way a lawyer would. Like Callie Shepherd's lawyer would."

"Oh crap," I said.

"Exactly," Scott said. "Remember what I've said about thinking things through carefully? You didn't think this one through. I'm officially declining your offer to serve on the board."

"I understand."

"Ask him again in a couple of years," Bill said. "After Miss Shepherd's lawsuit is resolved."

I nodded.

"Until then, you should avoid anything that her lawyer might be able to use against you or the university," Scott said. "Who else knows about the board of directors?"

"My dad, Joseph Grossi, Sr., and Joyce Abbadelli, all of whom are in Ohio. Then there's Dave, Julia, she's Dave's fiancée, Elyse, and Cindi. I think that's it."

"OK. It seems unlikely that Miss Shepherd's lawyers can find out about it," Bill said. "Scott, was it written in the business plan?"

"No," Scott answered. "It just stated the number and the types of people. No names. We're lucky."

"How would she get a copy of that?" I asked.

"A subpoena," Bill said. "All it takes is a lucky guess or a shrewd insight on her attorney's part. Has any of this been put in writing?"

"Only if Scott or Doctor Bauer wrote something down," I said.

Scott shook his head.

"OK. I'm going to sign off on this," Bill said. "You've done a fantastic job here, and I honestly wish you and Dave good luck, though I have to say I wish that you two would have come to work for us."

"I'm grateful for the opportunity, and for everything I've learned here. I just need to do my own thing."

Bill nodded, "I completely understand. I felt the same way when I started Nuvatec. We wish you nothing but success in the future. And make sure that you go see Doctor Bauer tomorrow."

"I will. And thanks," I said. "I'm sorry for the trouble I caused."

Bill smiled, "I've made some mistakes in my tenure here. They're going to happen. The key is to make sure that you do your utmost to avoid them. The best way to do that is good, sound advice. Call me if you need any."

"I will. And thanks again."

I left his office feeling like I'd dodged a major bullet. Of course, if somehow, some way, Callie Shepherd or her lawyer ever found out about this, it could create a firestorm, and I'd be right in the middle of it. I'd need to talk to everyone involved and let them know what had happened, but I didn't foresee too much of an issue, other than having to come up with a couple of names for the board of directors.

At home on Tuesday evening, I talked to Elyse and Julia, who promised to talk to Dave, and then called Joyce and my dad. My dad made the suggestion that I ask Doctor Bauer for a couple of names of professors either in the business school or computer science department at one of the other universities in the area. I thought that was a great idea and said that I'd do it when I talked to Doctor Bauer on Wednesday.

That evening in bed, Bethany broached a subject that I knew had to come up sooner or later — the issue of sharing my bed with Kara, and to a lesser extent, Elyse. I knew it was potentially thorny, but it was something that was going to have to be worked out if the three of us were going to be involved as a group.

"Did you know that most group situations end disastrously or lead to abuse?" Bethany asked.

"I know absolutely nothing about any other relationship like this other than what I've experienced," I admitted.

"The first thing you're going to have to decide is how you want it to work, and then talk it out with the people involved. I guess Jennifer won't be an issue if I understand correctly."

"That's right. I will love her until the day we die — longer, if that's possible. But once we make a baby together with Josie, Jennifer is going to be exclusive with Josie. I think you called that one exactly right."

"That wasn't rocket science," Bethany said with a smile. "As much as she loves you, she can't be anything other than who she is. I think you'll see a much happier person now that everything is out on the table and being dealt with. Elyse isn't all that different, though obviously she wants to continue having sex with you until both the kids she wants are born. That brings us to Kara. And that's where you need to define the relationship, whether you're with me, or Jessica, or whomever. Well, assuming you don't marry Kara right out and skip the group marriage idea completely."

"Do you really think that's possible for me?" I asked. "I mean, really, truly?"

"I think you could do it. It's a question of whether or not you should do it. And only you can answer that. But maybe this conversation will help you decide. The first question you have to ask yourself is, are you going to have two wives? I don't mean in the legal sense, but in your mind. Will both women be completely equal? Or will your legal wife have priority? A sort of first wife, second wife scenario like you might see in the Middle East."

"I hadn't really thought about that. I guess all I can say at the moment is that I'd love them both. I don't really have another answer. For the last four years, it's pretty much been me letting the girls decide amongst themselves when to come to me and when to not. And that's worked out reasonably well."

"Who sleeps in your bed with you? And when? In a traditional marriage, you share your bed with your wife and nobody else."

"Isn't that something we'd all have to sit down and agree on? And wouldn't it change depending on the circumstances and needs? I'm not foolish enough to assume all three of us would share a bed. I honestly don't see any of the girls I'm considering, or any of the core girls who've faded away, being sexually involved with each other. Well, there is one exception to that. If I married Jennifer, or if Kathy was my second wife and you were the first," I smirked.

"Jerk!" Bethany giggled. "Talk about your wet dream! Me, Kathy, and Kara? Every other male on the planet would be ready to kill you. Well, except Larry, I guess."

"Kurt would be first in line, and rightly so!" I chuckled.

"Here's another question for you. Let's assume it's me and Kara. Would you consider bringing in a third or fourth girl permanently? And would Kara and I have any say in the matter?"

"I believe you told me that if I wanted a completely free hand, I'd have to marry Elyse. I don't. That means I'm giving up some level of control to you and Kara, or Jessica and Kara, or Jessica and you, or however the hell this works out in the end."

"So you think I'd accept Jessica being your legal wife?" Bethany asked with an arched eyebrow.

"No, I don't. I was just throwing out the possible combinations. What I'm trying to say is that yes, whomever I'm involved with permanently is going to have some say in anything that happens. That's what a marriage is about, isn't it? Communication and working out a common way forward?"

"It is. And every marriage involves negotiation and compromise. What you're contemplating requires multi-way negotiation, and that can be tricky. What happens if Kara and I disagree on something?"

"Then we talk it out and work it out. I don't see any other way forward."

"And if you have to take sides? Have you considered that?"

"You know I don't believe in the no-win scenario. There's a solution to every problem. You just have to work harder to find some of them. I could say the same thing for a couple — some people divorce simply because they refuse to work hard enough to solve the problems. Have you ever known me to be like that?"

"Leaving aside immaturity and drama, both of which you're mostly past, no, I haven't known you to be like that. You work at things until you find a solution. I think it's why you're such a good programmer. You've spent nine years trying to find a solution with Jennifer, and despite some pretty major impediments, you've never, ever given up. Against my wishes, you spent years trying to find a modus vivendi with Becky, despite all the baggage and all the external pressure. So, I suppose your history says you might be able to make this work."

"I've managed with a houseful of girls for four years," I smirked.

"Amazingly, you actually have. And I think that is the single most important sign that you might actually be able to make this work. How do you plan to raise the kids in this Heinleinian tribe?"

"Elyse wants to raise her own kids, and so do Jennifer and Josie. I'll be involved, but most likely, they won't live with me. So I guess each mom worries about her own kids, unless we do it Kara's way where she acts as a nanny, or maybe a group mom, when the kids are little. Do you see any serious conflicts in personalities that would lead to wildly different ideas about raising a kid?"

"No, actually, I don't. You've selected your friends because they have, to a large extent, the same worldview that you do. Not always, but mostly. And you've talked a LOT about how you think kids should be raised, especially as teenagers. If Jennifer, Elyse, and Kara didn't think you were at least mostly right, they wouldn't want to have kids with you. But there's another problem."