Generosity Rewarded

There were more handshakes then they all sat down. Brent was glad the firm had sent Edwin. He was a no-nonsense, straight shooter and in the past he had always had time to advise Brent. Edwin said, "First let me say that the package you sent us was excellent. Brent you did a helluva job on that."

Brent said, "Thanks Mr. Lewis."

"Call me Ed, please."

Brent was surprised but said, "OK. Thanks Ed."

Edwin asked, "Have you already talked to other banks?" He knew better than to ask for names.

Brent said, "Of course."

Edwin said, "Good. That will make this easier. I won't feed you all the bullshit about how much better and more efficient we are than anyone else. You can read our pitch book after we leave. I'll just say this; we believe you are thinking much too small. JL Security Innovations is worth a lot more than you think. I just wanted you to hear that right from me."

Brent looked at Jay, and then said to Edwin, "Why do you say that?" He knew it was true, but Edwin was the first banker to actually admit it.

Edwin smiled, "Because I ran the numbers myself, and because I know you guys are about to land a big government contract."

Brent smiled. It wasn't exactly common knowledge, but it was publicly available information and a little digging by anyone would have found it. None of the other banks had even bothered to investigate. Brent thought, "Damn, he is good."

Edwin said, "Look, a year from now this company can be public with a market cap of $500M or more. You just need the right advisers and financing, and we think we are the right guys. That's my whole pitch."

Brent said, "Thanks Ed. We'll consider it and get back to you next week. I appreciate you taking the time to come and see us in person."

There were more handshakes all around and then Ed pulled Brent aside, "Brent, I know the firm treated you badly, but when you are done with this deal, come see me. I can always use a sharp guy like you."

Brent said, "Thanks Ed. That means a lot. I'll think about it."

* * *

The party was finally starting to wind down. Brent and Nikki were shaking hands and handing out hugs and kisses all around. The stock had closed at $55 a share after opening at $20. It turned out that Ed had been right after all, and after a year of hard work and long hours, the IPO had been an astounding success; JL Security Innovations was the talk of Wall Street, at least for this week. Brent's options had netted him enough to make him a multi-millionaire, although nowhere near the profit made by Nikki and Jay, but he was happy none the less. He had finally landed the big one, and he was quite proud of it.

All in all it had been a good month. His divorce from Evelyn had been finalized and she wasn't getting any of the money Brent had earned since she dumped him. He had proposed to Nikki and she had enthusiastically accepted. And now with the IPO complete, he could relax a little bit before he started working on his next project; a new homeless shelter that he and Nikki were going to build. Nikki was donating a sizeable sum to get the project off the ground and so were Ed and Jay. Brent was chipping in as well as running the project and he planned to name the new shelter in honor of Jacob.

It had been more than a year now and there had been no sign of Jacob. Brent had hired the best private investigators in the business, but they had never found a trace of him. They all told him he was wasting his money by keeping the search going, but he didn't care. He owed the old man a debt that could never be repaid.

Nikki closed the door behind the last guest and fell gracefully into his arms. She looked incredibly sexy in the gossamer, red gown, and Brent smiled knowing she was completely nude beneath the wispy material. "What a wonderful party!" She exclaimed.

Brent kissed her. Then he asked, "Have I told you how much I love you?"

Nikki frowned, "Not lately. But I know you have been busy."

Brent took her chin in his hand and said, "Well I'll tell you right now. I love you Nikki, now and forever."

Tears welled up in her eyes and she whispered, "Oh Brent. You are so sweet. Those are exactly the same words you used the very first time you told me you loved me."

They kissed again, slowly, sweetly, and lovingly, just enjoying the closeness of each other, tingling with anticipation, and holding on to the moment. Then Brent picked her up and carried her to the bed, her voluptuous body light and soft in his strong arms. Nikki carefully slipped off her slinky, red party gown and assumed a sexy, naked pose. As usual, Brent couldn't get his clothes off fast enough.

For hours they made love, exploring and using each other unabashedly. Between them nothing was taboo anymore; each freely gave their body to the other in any way they desired. They sought and gave pleasure equally, both dominating and submitting as they chose, focused only on the needs of the other until they were both spent and satisfied.

Later, as it had countless times before, Brent's restless mind woke him. The lights were calling him again; come, see us, feel us, revel in us and take our energy. Ever respectful of the gift he had been given, Brent climbed from his warm bed to stand in the window once more.