The Clinton Enterprises Saga

The Joint Venture Gets Complicated

Chapter 20 - Janice and Jeremy Join the Family

On another bright sunny morning, Emma and I took the breakfast chores. There was no sign of the naked nymphs who usually had coffee duty. We did two trays of coffee and juice and I offered to climb to the third floor.

Given the time change from London, I wasn't surprised to find open eyes after knocking on the door and being told to enter. Jeremy joked, "I say, the CEO should not be a serving maid."

"Be quiet, Economist, and enjoy your brief vacation. The serving maids are temporarily out of action. Too much pub crawling, I suspect."

Janice held out her hand for a squeeze. "Alec, that was the most lovely welcome yesterday anyone could imagine. And extra special because we were alive and not burned up in a stupid airplane."

They sat up for coffee and juice, Janice unselfconsciously pulling the sheet up to cover her breasts.

"Tell us, what mix of work and play do you have in mind for today?"

I smiled, "CE doesn't believe in those terrible Powerpoint briefings in windowless conference rooms. I'm afraid you will have to absorb a first round of introduction to the project from the incredibly talented women you met last night. Probably outdoors, which they love. There is a swimming pond, a running route, sunny dells in the trees, and soon the lab building will be functional."

She sighed and relaxed against Jeremy's chest. "I told you last night, and I'll repeat it this morning. You can't possibly be truly starting a company in this divine fashion."

"You look so beautiful right now, nestled in your lover's arms, it is hard for me to say there will be tough moments ahead. Anna climbs into my arms, like you do in his, and worries all the time. But then she stuffs one of her fantastic boobs in my face, grabs me for sex, and all the troubles disappear."

Janice's face was blushing as Jeremy whispered in her ear. "No, not now. We have to work."

He spoke up, "What did Alec just tell you? There is a cure for your worries and you are about to receive it."

Janice pulled the sheet over her head and Jeremy waved at me. I closed the door carefully.

Most everyone else was in the kitchen when I returned. "How is the third floor this morning?" Anna was giving me an intent look.

"Jeremy is treating Janice's worry problem."

"You are kidding. After last night?"

"She is very high strung. I told her the agenda was to absorb the CE program from all of your talented selves. I said you preferred to do that outdoors."

"This is not like you, Alec. What is going on?"

"I have advice from the HR Department that socialization with newcomers is important. I am delegating that to you. Jeremy and I are going for a sail, and will do shopping with your list while we are down the hill. Any more questions should be directed to Emma."

I was in my office attending to email when a familiar voice whispered in my ear, "You are an even better guy than I thought."

I rolled her over my shoulder into my lap. "Not possible. I'm just a dumb CS engineer with a curious cock and some wonderful girlfriends."

As I suspected, there was nothing under the dress. I pinched a prominent clit and said, "When there is snow, parts of you are going to freeze."

Another voice from behind, with an Asian accent, asked, "How does a curious cock take care of girlfriends buried in fleece and goosedown?"

Now I had two diminutive bodies in my lap, both squirming under curious fingers. "An always hot sauna, probably more than one, is required."

I kissed them gently and asked, "Is there a business purpose to this visit?"

The Controller relaxed and asked, "Should I talk money with Janice? They probably need some."

"Write her a check for $5,000. Say that is the standard advance and ask for travel receipts so you can write another. Find out where she wants to bank and assist if needed. Have you talked to the bank guy about commercial credit arrangements? Some of our equipment purchase orders will probably need letters of credit to go with them. Maybe we should segregate some of my royalties and use that account for collateral."

"Damn, every time I get close to catching up, there is another avalanche of homework. You are putting a lot of trust in a nineteen year old."

"No, I am surrounding you with people who will offer help whenever you need it."

I turned my attention to the General Counsel, who pursed her lips and demanded a second kiss.

She giggled, "Alec, we should make a tutorial video about how to launch a startup. The scene of morning staff meetings with the Controller and General Counsel will go viral."

She was also bare under her dress. And moist as well. "And is there a business purpose for your visit?"

"Beth and I have been working on Intellectual Property documents. Since we have the right people here, shouldn't we set aside a couple of hours for a discussion so I can turn these into complete working drafts to take to Sam for review?

"Yes. Absolutely. Tell me, now that I have delegated the calendar, how long are we staying here?"

"Emily and Clara and I are flying on Sunday. The rest of you are bringing the van down as soon as you are comfortable with where the various plans and homework stand. That doesn't count time for you and Jeremy to be troublemakers."

They were leaving my lap as Janice and Anna walked in, holding hands.

"Your lap, Alec? Really!" They leaned over the back of my chair for a kiss. I asked, "You seem to be socializing well. No hair pulling yet?"

"We are not here to tease. Is it possible to discuss business? We are too big for your lap."

We wandered out into the sunshine, talking work. Janice had been probing Anna for ideas on where to lend her talent to startup chores.

"What about ones with some overlap to the JV?" I asked. "Maybe financing angles? How to tap venture money without selling ourselves short?"

Her hip pressed mine. "That would be good. Jeremy will help. He knows a number of major players from his family interests. They are longtime international merchant bankers in the UK."

Anna wandered from the topic, saying, "You are well matched to that sexy guy. He certainly has caught the flavor of life in Vermont!"

Janice complained, "Alec, is she always such a hussy?"

Anna locked her arm around my neck, "I told him I would not be territorial and I'm not. It's actually easy, seeing that you have a man after you most of the time."

Janice stopped and applied a kiss to Anna's lips. "You and I are going to get along fine. We are both hot for sexy guys who know how to treat us!"

I knew in an instant they were thinking about a special party with four guests, all naked and aroused. "Bad girls. You said no teasing. I will take you both over my knee. Let's sit in the sun and talk timelines."

There was actual work done for the next hour and a half. Mostly about choke points on timelines where critical paths intersected. The two smart PhD's handed off chores to each other, talking animatedly with lots of enthusiasm. I took on several where additional research and fact finding was necessary.

We were about talked out when Clare and Clara came by, saying they could use some help in the lab building. Inside, we peered over their shoulders at the tenth scale drawing of the interior, and several cutouts for known equipment profiles.

Anna pulled my ears and said, "Any techie or PhD who tells you they know the perfect layout is full of it. The only realistic way to deal with lab prima donnas is to crisscross the room with a narrow overhead rack. That way, the electricians can do a drop anywhere you want."

"I'll put a drop on you!" I pulled her tight to my front, but Janice intervened with swats to my head just as Jeremy showed up, calling out, "Looks like you need a rescue, Alec!"

"Right you are, Jeremy. You and I are fleeing the premises, leaving the womenfolk to their own games. Do you fancy a sail? There is a sixteen footer at the marina we can use."

The accent rolled out, "By jove, what a dandy idea. I have a windbreaker and sneakers that will pass for boat shoes with me. I can be ready in ten."

It was actually most of an hour after Emma insisted on calling ahead, and also making us a hamper of food and drink. With quick kisses, we were off.

Driving down to the lake, Jeremy said, with a lot less accent, "Great hospitality you provide, Alec. Janice was really concerned about joining up with you, despite the brave talk in public."

I smiled across at him and chuckled. "The problem with Phd's, Jeremy, is that they are smart enough to know how much trouble they are getting into. A lot of people just blunder blindly ahead, hoping for the best."

I went on, "Of course, the two of you seem well suited to provide backup for each other."

"She is such a hurricane. I'm still getting over the incredible sex we have. And last night was the best ever. Those two young ones really got her going."

"Emily has instructions to make sure Janice feels welcome."

"Lying there last night, it sounded to me like she was getting a fantastic welcome from you!"

"Maybe both of us got carried away?"

That's what I meant, Alec, about hospitality!"

While we rigged the boat at the marina, Jeremy entertained me with tales of his family's long time engagement with Cowe's Week, an annual sailing regatta held next to the Isle of Wight, with hundreds of boats and dozens of races.

"I was dinghy racing at ten years old, following uncles and aunts who had won trophy after trophy."

"So Janice wasn't the first hypercompetitive female you've run into?"

"We went to the family house on the water on the river Medina and she wowed my family. We had a tennis match against my sister and brother-in-law that was unbelievable!"

I maneuvered out of the slip and got us past the breakwater before turning the helm over to Jeremy. There was a smart southwesterly breeze and he took off on a starboard close reach. With both of us on the high side rail, the little boat zipped right along. His smile was a mile wide.

"Damn, this is good fun. I haven't been sailing for months. Too much to do with finishing my dissertation and romancing Janice!"

"When we get back to Cambridge, we can investigate the dinghy options. My experience was only with the student races."

"That sounds terrific. I am still up in the air about work, but something will turn up, I guess."

"Fresh from your degree, you deserve a little downtime. I suggested to Janice that you consult with us as she is, but focus on financing aspects. My group and I are novices about the ins and outs of financing startups. So far, we have been using a cash hoard from my chip royalties, but that is unlikely to last until we have product revenue."

The breeze was freshening and I suggested a tack, which would allow a broad reach across the lake. Jeremy took us about with a professional touch. Perhaps a trip for the four of us into the Gulf of Maine would be fun. Two experienced sailors with two strong but unruly women. Might be too late for this year. Maybe a last minute decision in a finale of Indian summer.

"Alec, sure you don't want to take the helm back?"

"I'm very happy to crew for you. I had a thought that if a warm spell sets in, the four of us might do a quick charter into the Gulf of Maine for two or three days. You and I could probably handle a thirty-six footer without much trouble. Of course, Janice and Anna would be second guessing our every move!"

"We could make them lay out the courses and tell them not to run us aground?"

"Anything we could charter would have a depth sounder and radar. Rocky shoals and fog have wrecked many vacations up there!"

Plattsburg and boat traffic lay ahead of us, so Jeremy jibed and headed home. As we got close, I took the helm and brought us into the wind to drop the mainsail. There was more than enough wind to carry us to the marina on the jib alone.

Thirty minutes later, the little boat was tied up and shipshape. As we headed into the market with our shopping list, I elbowed Jeremy. "The women will have cooked up no end of trouble for us. It's too bad there's no sex shop handy. I could purchase a flogger and put it in one of the grocery bags. When they find it, we could growl and threaten torture."

Chapter 21 - Rumors About the Joint Venture

There was trouble when we got back to the house, but it wasn't from the women. Anna and Janice stood on the front porch, frowning. "Liu called, said we needed to get on the phone together. And there is a message from Jake in our email."

Without stopping for a shower, the four of us trooped to my office and got Liu on the speaker phone. He was terse as always.

"There was a message from Seoul this morning, saying the JV team would be here in a week and could we arrange housing. When I emailed back asking for the composition of the team, they said it was still being determined and we would hear in a day or so."

I pulled up Jake's email while Liu was talking. It was cryptic, "Please call asap."

I said to Liu, "I have a message from Sung's helper, asking for a phone call asap. What do you suppose is going on?"

Anna had crawled into my lap. Janice was in Jeremy's lap on the sofa. Both of them looked comfortable, alert and full of the devil.

Liu responded, "We know that there are internal tensions. Sung may have gotten impatient and wants to co-opt us in some way?"

Janice raised her voice so Liu could hear, "Perhaps we should play along for now? You don't mind a little drama?"

He laughed, "Trying to break me out of professor boredom, are you?"

The rest of the conversation was agreeing we would contact Jake, and let things develop. I said, "We will be down the first of the week and can caucus with you if needed."

The women were applying kisses. I wondered where Jake was and picked up the phone. It was early morning in Seoul. He answered on the second ring. "Hello, Alec, thanks for returning my call so quickly."

"Where are you? Is this an ok time to talk."

There was a voice in the background, "She says you are interrupting, but it is ok."

Janice was across the room in a flash, seizing the phone, "Is this Ye-jin? Is he in your bed in Berkeley, daring to talk work?"

There was a deliciously long giggle from the phone. "Oh, he is so pink! I warned him about leaving that message!"

"Do not worry, Anna and I have the males at this end under our thumb. When are you coming to see us? We need to talk to a Berkeley expert."

Jeremy and I rolled our eyes. Things were already out of control.

There were more giggles as Jake must have wrestled the phone back from his girlfriend. "Alec, we are in trouble. The only thing to do is for Ye-jin and me to fly to you on Monday. She is whispering that she can't leave before then. She is a TA this quarter."

"Jake, we are guessing that Sung is shaking up the JV?"

"Yes, in a big way. Can't discuss over the phone. Could be very good news from your point of view."

This time, Anna grabbed the phone. "Ye-jin, just come as you are. We have a spare room in Cambridge, and we will provide cold weather clothes if necessary."

From our end, we could hear, "They sound very nice," and the answer, "They are. Tell them goodbye."

She said, "Nice to talk, see you soon." Click.

Janice eyed the spare area on the sofa and said, "Get over here. We need to talk."

Anna showed me her thumb and pointed at the sofa, laughing. As we joined them, I growled, "We can be pushed too far..."

"Be quiet. Give us soft kisses and behave while we think about what next."

I didn't mind the soft kisses, but worried about the rest. Letting two brilliant females loose on our problems was asking for trouble. From a male point of view, that is.

I had to admit that cuddling with Anna under the sofa blanket was very nice. But the kisses weren't going anywhere because they were distracted, chatting with each other and deciding, without any input from Jeremy or me, that we needed to be in Cambridge on Sunday, all of us.

Propitiously, Emma popped her head in and started to ask about dinner before she absorbed the contents of the sofa, with two women sitting up in the middle, and two males lounging in their laps. "What on earth are you up to now?" She walked over to get a grip on the tousled heads of hair.

"We are demonstrating our superior problem solving skills. They are only allowed chaste kisses."

Jeremy and I growled simultaneously as Emma was tipped over the back of the sofa into our warm grasp. Janice spoke first, "Emma, there is mischief afoot and we need to be in Cambridge. You must come along."

Jeremy massaged her bare feet while I attended to scalp and neck and shoulders. She twisted, giggled and sat up. "Of course, I must come along. I am the Executive Vice President, aren't I?"

In ten quick minutes, we had Emma caught up with the latest news. Thinking out loud, she said, "Today is Thursday. We will have a day of play and getting organized tomorrow, and leave Saturday morning. Let's not try to cram everyone in the van. We will do a show of hands at dinner between fliers and riders."

While Emma was doing her EVP job, Janice and Anna were kissing and tickling and laughing. Getting a grip on messy hair again, she said, "No wonder you are in trouble with your menfolk. I'm leaving to make toddies in the kitchen. I expect you there in fifteen minutes with all your issues worked out!"

In a flash, Jeremy and I were on the backside of the sofa, dragging protesting bodies into position. "Anna dear," I said, "fifteen minutes for all of our issues to disappear?"

"No, you can't. We have to agree."

"You have been ordered to work out your issues. Are you disobeying the Executive Vice President?"

Before I finished talking, their shorts and panties were on the floor. Jeremy's and mine joined them. A chorus of no's was still in the air, but the moans that accompanied the full thrust of two cocks were welcoming. Anna clenched and muttered, "Bastard!"

I gnawed on her shoulder and thrust deeper. Trying a new technique, I said, in my low male voice, "Anna, you are smart, sexy, warm and all a man could desire. Loving you is the best thing that ever happened to me."

Not believing her ears, Anna went catatonic, then howled into an amazing orgasm, shaking wildly under my hands. Her climax set Janice off, who had her own drawn out wail.

After a long moment, they turned around with loving kisses. "You are truly evil, but you have fixed us. We need a shower..."

At dinner, we were required to sit next to them, where we could be frequently poked. Finally, I spoke up. "We had some important news this afternoon, and these two required tension release afterwards. They are still recovering. If they can be quiet, I will fill you in."

The other women laughed and giggled as Janice and Anna hissed up a storm. But I was impressed how quickly the room quieted into a silence of working minds. Emma took command when my recital was finished, talking about logistics and asking for hands on who wished to fly and who wished to ride. Janice and Jeremy asked if they might ride, since neither had been through the Vermont countryside before. Beth, Clara and Emily joined them, leaving four of us to fly.

Arriving at Logan on Saturday afternoon, we talked a cabbie into taking all four of us. Emma had my lap, with Anna and Amy beside us. Emma threatened severe consequences if they did not stop giggling and kissing. "You are the two smartest and acting like the Wild Ones. What is going on?

"You heard what Alec said in Vermont. Smart makes us worry, and worry needs release."

"But Anna just got a lot of release. Work goes before worry goes before release!"

My hand was under her skirt, squeezing a tough thigh in agreement. She leaned for a kiss.