Chapter 10: Sophomore Year

School was boring enough that I considered trying to skip a few years but instead focused on the other aspects of my life: friends, football, farming, and fast cars. Okay, farming was becoming less and less of a focus, but I still felt obligated to give Uncle Ben more of a hand now that Ryan and John were away at school. Interestingly enough the farming gave me more specific ideas on how to apply drive by wire to large machinery. That, in turn, led me to Caterpillar, in a very roundabout way.

Since Jim would have a conflict of interest talking directly to Caterpillar, I asked him to approach John Deere first. They were a powerhouse of farm equipment, and Uncle Ben’s preferred brand, so I was very familiar with their equipment. Rather than funding a full conversion of one of their machines to demonstrate for them, I wanted to partner with them to do the work. Most of the limits on how long a farmer could safely use a big machine were due to physical fatigue. I thought some of my ideas could help reduce the effort and fatigue level and thus make the machinery safer.

The engineers we met with were very interested in my approach, but immediately expressed concern over the durability of the electronic components in the harsher industrial and farm environment. Mechanical linkages were proven to be able to stand up to the rigorous conditions of the field. I knew that electronics could be ruggedized and shock mounted, I had just never done it myself from a design perspective. For the car, I had made things sturdy, but no one was going to drive through a rough plowed field in it either.

After some wrangling by Jim, we entered into an agreement to jointly develop a series of prototypes for field testing. Deere had a joint project with Caterpillar for power trains, which got them into the mix. At that point, Jim decided he needed to find outside counsel to keep things ethical.

I was surprised one evening when Jim showed up at the farm with an attractive middle aged (to my eyes) woman and introduced her as Candace Brennan. Jim then bowed out and went to chat with my mother as I led Candace into my office.

She was attractive, with straight blonde hair pulled back into a pony-tail. She was wearing a nicely tailored suit with a skirt and heels that showed her curves and legs nicely. Of course, it was not really suited to a farm or shop environment.

“Jim has briefed me on your portfolio and the current deals in the auto industry and current discussions with Deere and Caterpillar. It seems like you are doing some exciting things for someone so young.”

Her tone made the hair on the back of my neck stand up.

“I don’t know that age has much to do with it. Most people have ideas but not the will to see them through to the full logical conclusion the idea leads them to. I think the ideas are the easy part.” I motioned her to the couch as I dropped into the leather chair in my office. “Now, Jim has found you and briefed you, so I assume you are at least on retainer.” I tried to make my tone as cold but professional as possible.

She lowered herself onto the edge of the couch but sat as erectly as if she were in a courtroom. “Yes, privilege applies to our discussion as well as the information Jim has already provided.”

“Good. Why did Jim pick you?”

That blunt question got a reaction. “I’ve worked with and against Jim in several cases over the past seven years since passing the bar and focusing on patent law. I believe he chose me because I’m good at what I do.”

“Wouldn’t a contract specialist be better than another patent attorney? I mean, we are trying to do a deal, not re-file or defend my portfolio.”

“You don’t have the patents yet. You’ve only applied. That means we need to protect the company from the consequences of the applications being turned down as well as contractual issues. We also need to make certain that you are included in any derivative patents that might be filed as a result of these joint efforts. In short, you’ll be better served by a patent attorney that understands contracts than by a contract attorney who knows a little about patents.”

Her tone had shifted from judgmental to defensive, but seemed to be slipping into lecture mode. For some reason, a thirty-one-year-old lawyer lecturing me hit all my buttons. I suddenly felt my seven decades of life in my bones.

“Who else have you worked with?”

Rather than answer, she pulled out a sheet of paper from her portfolio and handed it to me. It was on a legal firm’s letter head. I did not see her name on the paper.

“So your firm has worked with these companies. Have you been involved with each of them?’

“Of course. Each of these were firms I worked closely with. The contact names are the inside counsel I worked for.”

It was an impressive list. Lockheed in particular caught my eye. “What area were you working on for Lockheed?”

“I can’t provide details, but it had some similarities to what you have done for cars.”

“So, fly by wire systems?”

“I can’t say. It involved classified projects they were working on for the government.”

I suspected it related to stealth. I recalled that they had pushed computer controlled flight software to help minimize aspect ratios on flight planning and make sure the stealth bombers always flew the correct profiles. Instead of probing further, I shifted to another company.

“And what about Corning?”

“That was straight industrial patent filing work. They had some new processes and materials they were protecting.”

“What was unique about them? Weight, density, thermal properties?”

“Durability and process for fabrication. They came up with a new way of making the material that made it significantly stronger as well.”

I jumped to another company, and then another. After fifteen minutes, I had the pattern down and knew why Jim had picked Candace. She had contacts in the areas I wanted to set up research projects. This Caterpillar contract was an extended job interview.

That made my questions shift.

“So, can you work for a snot-nosed teenager who thinks his ideas can change the world?”

It was loaded question.

“From what Jim’s told me, you are hardly a snot-nosed teenager.”

“But you want to treat me like one. Why’s that?” I consciously changed my tone and relaxed my face and body as I asked the question. It forced her to look at me.

I saw a hint of a smile cross her face as she licked her lips before answering. “Let’s just say that I worked hard to get where I am. When I heard what you’ve done, it sounds like things were handed to you without any real work on your part. You had some ideas and sold them.” She shrugged her shoulders.

It was an answer, but was it the truth?

“So the fact that I have put in six eighteen hour days every week for the past year isn’t real work?”

“I’ve worked fifty and sixty hour weeks for years, and I don’t have what you have.”

“And I just said I worked 108 hour weeks for the past year. I’ll have caught up to your professional work effort before I graduate from college and that makes me the spoiled person in the room? I told you that ideas are easy. The will to follow them through is what matters. I have that will. It doesn’t make me spoiled, it means I’m focused. Are you focused enough to work for me, is the question.”

“What do you mean?”

“You still haven’t answered my last question. Can you work for me? This contract should be simple. But the next three after that won’t be. And any one of them could revolutionize whole industries. I’m not content to sit still and let others set the direction we are heading. I plan on making a difference. And I know I’ll step on some feelings and egos making that difference. The question you need to answer is whether your ego and feelings will keep you from working with me. Will they?”

She looked at me for thirty seconds, weighing and judging. Finally, “This isn’t just about the Caterpillar contract, is it.”

I smiled, but said nothing.

She continued to look at me. “How do you want to change the world?”

“Finally, the right question. Currently, we are on a trajectory to consume all the available energy producing resources on our planet in the middle of the next century. Our power consumption globally doubles every seven years. We have to change either our consumption patterns, or our generation capabilities. I’m looking to do both. That is what my company is all about for the long term.”

“So your current patents are on the consumption side?”

“Mostly, but I also needed to raise capital. Alternative energy is going to take some big dollars to pursue. It’s also going to draw the ire of some very vested interests, like the oil companies and the OPEC nations. Protecting the people working on these problems will become more important in the future.”

“And if you are successful, there will be a fortune to be made.”

I nodded.

For the first time since entering my office, I saw Candace take a deep breath and actually relax. “I can work for that sort of cause and the person that wants to achieve it. Yes, I can work for you.”

“Good. We may not always get along, Candace, but we don’t have to. I want people around me that can tell me I’m full of shit or why an idea is bad. What I want to achieve is too important to waste time on bad ideas.”

She actually smiled. “So when did you and Jim plan out this grilling interview?”

I laughed. “We didn’t. Jim told me you were just outside counsel for this contract. I took a look at your references and realized you had the contacts in almost every area I want to start researching. I think Jim was just trying to be tricky to see how we worked together.”

“Well, maybe we should just let his plan play out for the short-term. I like some of the people at my firm, but know that I’ll never make partner as a woman focused on patent work. Let’s get this contract with Caterpillar out of the way, and then we can talk about the next steps.”

“Agreed.” I stood up and shook her hand. It seemed like we had a new lawyer on our side. I couldn’t decide if that was ominous or a good thing.

Jeryl and Candace met the next week. I was a little worried that Jeryl would be jealous again, but nothing came of it. Instead, they chatted amicably and then Jeryl started showing her the filing system she and Jim had set up.

It seemed that Jeryl and I spent more evenings together, but it was in the office or conference room rather than on dates. We had shown each other much affection on the leather furniture, but that was starting to feel more like stress relief than making love. After the third home football game, and a stack of notes with contract and patent questions, I decided that had to change.

“Kitten,” I said as we got in the car for me to take her home. “We need to change some things.”

Jeryl tensed and I rushed ahead. “Nothing bad. It’s just that we are both consumed by school and work right now. I don’t feel that we’re spending enough time just having fun.”

Jeryl relaxed and grabbed my hand. “Don’t scare me like that. I know what you mean, but I really enjoy helping you out with your work. I think about the things you are doing and the business you’re trying to launch, and then I think about the drama in school over who is dating whom and it makes me think how juvenile everyone is. I’d rather be helping you.”

“I love that you feel that way, but we need to have some fun too. What can we do tomorrow night that will feel juvenile and fun?”

“Let’s see if Jim and Lisa want to go bowling,” she suggested.

“Bowling?”

“Bowling. We can go hangout and throw the big balls down the lane and just relax.”

“Okay. I’ll call Jim in the morning and see what we can do.”

“And before that, I want you to go car shopping with me.”

“You’re buying a car?”

“No, we’re looking at cars to figure out your next project, silly. I’ve been typing your notes, remember. You need something a lot faster to test out some of those ideas on. I’m thinking a used stock car you can rebuild. I saw a couple of ads in the paper this week, but we’ll need to drive a bit to check things out.”

“Wow, you amaze me.”

I pulled into her yard and leaned over to kiss her.

That’s how my girlfriend got me into fast cars.

“My dad wants to know what’s going on with you,” Lisa said midway through the season as we sat at the lunch table.

“What do you mean?”

“Your play is kind of bland this year. Last year, as a freshman, you made things happen on the field. This year, you are solid, but not showing that spark that fired people up.”

Jim nodded in agreement. “You could be the anchor of the defense if you had the same fire you did last year.”

I had to admit to myself that they were right. It felt like I did not have to prove anything this year. “My stats are solid. We’ve actually given up fewer yards this year than last year.”

“Yeah, but that’s because the schedule is easier this year compared to the start last year. We’ve got some much better schools lined up for the next six weeks. They saw you play last year as a freshman. They are going to be keying on you this year, especially since you’re the only sophomore on the varsity squad. If you don’t find some of your drive, you’re going to get hurt out there, or hurt the team. I don’t want either to happen.”

That made me think. I didn’t say anything else during lunch, but decided to find the coach after practice. Coach Johnson waved me into the shared office after I showered. Coach Miller was there as well.

“So what’s the matter, Taylor?” Coach J asked.

“I don’t know, coach. Jim talked to me at lunch and said my play intensity was down. Once he said it, I could see what he was saying. I don’t know why, but it’s like I don’t have to prove anything to anyone this year. I’m sorry if I’m letting the team down.”

Coach J glanced at Coach Miller and then got up and closed the door to the hallway. “You are letting the team down. Do you think you can buy your way onto our team?”

“What?” I was unsure what he meant.

“Come on Taylor. You think the coaches don’t know who is funding the new pool for the school. Did you think just because we were the recipient of a generous donation that we wouldn’t wonder where it came from? We saw the news about you in the car shows over the summer. We’ve heard about some deals you made with some car companies. We notice the sudden upgrade to your wardrobe over the summer. We may be coaches, but we all went to good schools and can put two and two together.”

I was dumbfounded. I had no idea people knew, let alone the coaching staff.

“We put you on the varsity because of your skills and ability, but you’re playing like you bought a position. If your teammates think that, you will get hurt, and will only have yourself to blame.”

“What can I do? Do you want me to quit?”

“Hell no,” Coach Miller bellowed. “We want you to prove to everyone that you deserve to be on the field, just like you proved to us last year and during tryouts. We want you to focus on the other team and make plays. Put that genius brain of yours to work on some practical, short-term problems every game. Help lead the team like you did as a freshman. Stop feeling sorry for yourself and decide to be an impact player. Get out of your own friggin’ head.”

He was red in the face as he wound down finally. I had never seen him like that before. It was both scary and a little funny. I looked over at Coach J who was grinning and shaking his head.

“Coach Miller is right. You’ve been playing like a zombie, like only part of your attention is on the game. You’ve had good, safe play, but that isn’t going to be enough going forward. If your attitude and focus don’t change, I’ll have to pull you. I hope you don’t make me do that, but it is your decision.”

I was stunned. I mumbled something to the coaches and thanked them for their time. By the time I made it to my car, my ego kicked in and began stoking a fire inside me. How could they even think of pulling me? Had I slacked off that much?

The next couple of days were foggy. I worked hard in practice, but I knew our own playbook too well. I was going through the motions helping our team get better. Friday night before the game, I sat quietly in the locker room.

“What’s up?” Jim asked.

I snapped out of my thoughts and forced a smile. “Just trying to get focused for the game.” I had spent the afternoon looking at some film of our opponent, Flanagan. We did not have much equipment for film study and usually watched our opponent’s last game film on Mondays to get focused for the week. Today I had just keyed on their offense.

Jim smiled. “Get focused, but have some fun too. Last year, you enjoyed the contact. Don’t forget that.” He slapped my shoulder pad and moved onto another player. I watched him for a minute and decided he was becoming the leader of the team, even though he was still a junior. He was my friend even though I had let him down some this season. I decided it was time to rectify that.

I don’t know if Flanagan had watched film of us from last week or not, but it did not matter after their first snap of the game. I always had a blitz option on the first snap if I saw an opportunity. This time, I decided to force the opportunity. They had lined up for an option play where I would leave a man uncovered for a second. But, I had noticed the QB never hit my side on the first look. As soon as the ball was snapped, I was moving up field. The tight-end gave me a small shove, but was more worried about moving downfield for his route. I spun once and then had a straight line for the QB. I sprinted in, dropped low and wrapped him up for a six yard loss and my first sack of the game.

My teammates went wild. Even I could feel the change in energy in our defensive huddle. Randy Johnson, the defensive captain called the next defensive play and we spread back out quickly. The ball was snapped, and I immediately recognized the sweep coming my way. Their tackle had eyes for me, but I was not going to let him put me down for payback. I faked him left and dodged right to wrap up the running back at the line of scrimmage.

The next play went the other direction with me chasing the QB as he threw the ball away. Just like that, special teams was coming on the field to take their punt.

“Good job, Taylor,” Coach J yelled. “Glad to see the intensity back.” I nodded my head and then took a spot close to the sideline to see what developed.

“Oh, shit, Paul. I can’t take any more.” I smiled to myself and lifted my tongue from Jeryl’s pussy. She pulled me up and kissed me passionately. “That was something else. I either had three intense orgasms or one incredibly long one with three peaks. You are amazing.”

“I’m glad you liked it. I missed you this week.” It was harvest time and between school, football, and field work we had not seen each other, only talked on the phone. She had even missed my football game the night before due to a volleyball game. It was a surprise to both of us that we hadn’t had any time together since the previous Sunday.

Jeryl stroked my cock and snuggled up to me in the back seat of the car. We had had dinner with her folks and then saw a movie. We were parked in a secluded drive a few miles from our houses. The chill autumn air encouraged cuddling.

“What can I do for you this evening after such a wonderful gift?” she asked as she kissed my neck.

“Whatever you want, kitten. I’m happy being with you, whatever we do.”

She continued to stroke me gently. “Can we try something new?” she asked.

“Like what?”

“Something I heard at school. Kay said it happened to someone else, but I think it happened to her with Bill Stillman.”

“What?”

“Well, I don’t want you to think I’m a nasty slut or anything, but when Kay told me about it, it kind of turned me on, at least the thought of doing it with you did.”

Now I was definitely curious. “What is it?”

“Kay said this other girl wanted to try sucking a boy off, but made him promise not to come in her mouth. He agreed, but they never really said what he should do when he came. He evidently pulled out at the last second and came all over her face. She said it was gross and stung her eyes, and she ended up getting a taste anyway, but when she told me about it, I got really turned on. Do you think you could do that for me?”

“If you want me to, but I don’t think we can do it in the back seat.”

“Yes we can. I’ve been thinking about it. Let me lay down, and you straddle me with your knees right under my armpits.” She maneuvered us around and was soon looking up at me and still stroking my cock with her hand. Occasionally, she would suck my head into her mouth and give herself some lubrication to work with.

“Are you getting excited about painting my face with your cum,” she asked with a wicked smile.

“Yes,” I gasped as she tightened her grip on me.

She lifted her head and sucked me in deeper and then resumed her stroking. “Do you have a big load for me?” Her other hand came up beneath me and gently squeezed my balls.

“Uh-huh,” I agreed.

“Good.” Her tongue traced a long stroke along the underside of my cock; then she popped my head into her mouth and sucked as her stroking continued. I was getting close and Jeryl knew it. She kept me in her mouth as her fingers pressed firmly behind my balls and then popped my cock out as I started to cum.

She closed her eyes as the first spurt erupted and landed on her cheek and forehead. The next she guided to the other cheek. Then she let me guide the remaining spurts and just laid there with a smile on her cum covered lips. Once I was finished, she licked the spend from her lips and began collecting it with her fingers.

“That was amazing. I may be a pervert, but that really turned me on,” she said when she finally opened her eyes.

I handed her a small towel from the storage area under the seat and smiled. “It was amazing. If you need me to do that again, I’ll be happy to oblige.”

“It is a little messy, but there is something naughty about it that really gets me going.”

“Is that a hint that you need a little more relief?”

Jeryl pulled me down on top of her and just held me. “No, I want to just think about how good you’ve made me feel tonight and let a little more anticipation build. I hated not seeing you this week, but tonight was better because of it. I don’t want us to take each other for granted, now or ever. Making me wait for you is a good thing, I think.”

“Well, you know I’m willing to wait for you.”

“I’m glad. I’m also glad you didn’t let me make a mistake when you told me about the scholarships. I would have fucked you silly, but it will be much better now when we do.”

“I want it to be special for you, and when you are ready.”

“Which I love you for.” She kissed me again and then we got cleaned up and I drove her home. We were sitting in her driveway before we really spoke again.

“Paul, I do want to make love to you something fierce, and I’m not waiting until we get married, regardless of what my grandmother or mother threaten. You know that, don’t you?”

“Jeryl, I love you. I want to make love to you, but I also want to protect you. That includes protecting you from yourself and from me. When it is right for us, we will make love in the traditional sense, but if you think for a minute what we did tonight was not making love, you’re being silly. We pleasured each other with our bodies and got pleasure from giving pleasure. If that isn’t making love, I don’t know what is.”

Jeryl lunged across the gap between our seats and kissed me.

“You’re absolutely right,” she finally said. “We make love every time we touch. I need to remember that instead of worrying about a meaningless hymen. I love you Paul.”

“I love you too, Kitten.”

Football season ended at the same place as the prior year. We lost in the regional tournament. Jim and I both played well, but at the end of the game, we had been out muscled and unable to stop our opponent. It was disappointing, but in another sense, it was a relief the season was over. I seemed to have so many demands on my time.

I was racking up miles on my car driving to Peoria every other Monday afternoon now meeting with engineers there. Candace had wrapped up our contract with them nicely and if the prototype panned out, we would have another two-million-dollar licensing deal. John Deere was in a similar situation, testing a fully ruggedized version of my drive by wire system. I knew that as long as the shock-mounted connections held up, it too would be successful.

On Wednesday’s, I now had a standing dinner meeting with Jim and Candace to cover our research contracts and university endowments. Reviewing proposals and university level curriculum vitae was different, but fortunately Candace seemed to have a knack for knowing where we needed to look to get to the right people. We had just finished our last meeting before we took a break for the holidays when I broached the subject about Candace joining us full time.

“So, how soon can you wrap up things at your firm and work for us full time,” I asked as we put away the last file of the night.

“I don’t know that there is enough full-time work for me yet.” She countered.

“Baloney. Your firm bills you out to us at $300 an hour. I’ll give you a starting salary of $120,000 and we break even in four hundred billable hours. You, on the other hand, can work a regular 40-hour week instead of 60, make as much as you are now in take-home, and get some dividend paying stocks granted on a vesting schedule.”

“How much stock?”

I glanced at Jim. I had not told him all my plans yet. Whatever I gave Candace I would match with him, plus the fifty shares he already had. “A hundred shares, vesting over seven years.”

“What’s a share worth?”

“About ten grand a share, but we pay dividends too.”

“What?”

“We’ve had fourteen million in revenue this year. Four million is earmarked for projects already, so even if they don’t produce a return, we have a thousand private shares worth ten million dollars. It’s just math.” I shrugged. “When the John Deere deal closes, we’ll see the stock value tick up two thousand a share. The board might just vote to give it out as a dividend. You should get in on the ground floor, Candace.”

“I had no idea. I mean, I knew the size of the Caterpillar deal, but this is much bigger.”

“And that doesn’t count any future licensing fees,” Jim added. “I just heard that next year’s model of Cadillac will have Paul’s drive by wire system installed. Every car that rolls off their line will be an additional five dollars to the company.”

“Wow.” Candace sat back in her chair. “When we talked in the fall, I thought this was a much longer term plan. Why a seven-year vesting?”

“A year after I finish college, if I take my time. You’ll still receive dividends during the vesting period. There are a few other caveats like right of first refusal if you decide to sell your shares, but it’s pretty straightforward, really.”

“And what will I be doing for my forty hours a week?”

“Overseeing these research contracts, checking up on the public research proposals tied to the endowments, and making some acquisitions with Jim on a case by case basis.”

“Wow, again. I’m almost never at a loss for words and you two have stymied me.”

Jim held up is hands. “Don’t blame me. This is all on Paul.”

Candace looked at me and I just smiled.

“Okay, I’ll give my notice for the first of the year.”

“Welcome aboard,” I said as I extended my hand to shake on the deal.

A little bit later, it was just Jim and I and I told him a little more of my plan. “I’m matching Candace’s offer for you and giving you 150 shares, Jim. You can still handle the jobs you’re on retainer for, but I think I’m going to have plenty to keep you and Kelly and Candace busy this coming year.”

“Like what?”

“People and patents,” I said. “I want the company to start some targeted hiring and/or acquisitions.”

“For what?”

“The future.” I had told Jim about my concerns for the generation and use of energy. He knew I was serious about it. “By the time I’m finished with high school, I want to have at least triple the patent portfolio I have now. I’m not going to have enough ideas or time to file those myself, so I want to find like-minded inventors and hire them or buy them out. I can identify the broad area we want to engage in, and you’ll have to dig for the nuggets in the sand, so to speak.”

“We could end up losing a lot of money with that approach,” he cautioned.

“And we can strike it rich once or twice as well.”

The news of who was endowing the pool came out right before the Winter Dance. Mom refused to comment, and most adults were too polite to ask her direct questions, but kids had no such filters. I finally got my lines down pat on the second day of the story getting out. Pretty much every question or comment could be answered with a shrug and words along the lines of “I had some good fortune and wanted to give back to the community.” Lisa and Jim seemed to step in a lot if anyone got obnoxious. It was funny to see some of the girls suddenly want to be my friend. Luckily almost everyone knew I was dating a cute brunette from another school.

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