Chapter Nineteen
Griffin
The sensible security guy—Dan?—and Heather must’ve finished processing my class, because my students are waiting on the top floor with visitor’s passes on their chests. Unlike the lobby, the vestibule is a respectable space with carpet like you’d find in any normal corporate office, and the décor is simple and inviting.
My students are looking around avidly, ready to absorb whatever information—or sex toy lore—they can. Their attitude chafes. They spend most of my class acting as though they’re going to burn in hell if they pay attention for even ten minutes.
I decide then and there to make the final impossible to pass without listening to my lectures. The class has two textbooks, but I can use them as supplementary material and do my own spin on every concept.
Heather starts the tour, showing what goes into researching and manufacturing adult products. I’m a little surprised that there’s more than just making a mold off an erect penis in the process. But then, this isn’t my area.
Some of the girls look shocked as Heather displays earlier prototypes, while the boys giggle like idiots.
“Is it okay if we take pictures?” one of the frat boys asks with a suspiciously innocent look.
“Actually, no. Everything’s proprietary here. Don’t forget you all signed NDAs to keep our products in development secret when you received your visitor’s pass.” Heather speaks calmly, like a professional.
That piece of paper won’t mean anything to these kids. Most of them have probably never even read a contract before scrawling their names.
“They’ll sue you for millions if you break it,” I say. “You’ll spend the next half a decade in court, and then another few years in jail. And I’ll make sure to fail you as well.” That should put the fear of God into them.
The tour doesn’t take that long, probably because Heather can’t show us everything. Even if she wanted to, we can’t stay here for long, since the students have other classes to get to.
As Heather takes us to the elevator bank, Sierra comes out. “I hope you found the tour interesting. We’ll send you some data sets to analyze later in the week.” She smiles.
“Speaking of anal-yzing data, how often does your average college girl use one of the things we saw here?” Porter says. He elbows the guy next to him, and there are some snickers. Tanner, of course, laughs uproariously like the embarrassment that he is.
Sierra looks at them in slight confusion, then her expression turns here-we-go-again. It’s irritating, as though she’s judging me.
“Show some respect, or you’ll fail the class,” I say coldly.
The boys flinch, but Tanner’s eyes grow hard and rebellious. “You can’t fail me because I laughed at a joke,” he says.
“No. But there will be a dozen other opportunities before the end of the term.” I stare him down.
Within seconds, he breaks eye contact. He knows he can’t afford to piss me off any more than he already has.
The two elevators arrive, and the college kids pile inside. As I walk past Sierra, I murmur, “Sorry about the inappropriate comment.”
She smiles and shrugs. “I’ve heard worse. But thanks for coming to our defense.”
Her simple thanks makes my heart skitter.
“Your students are waiting.” She tilts her head at the elevators.
I nod curtly and step inside one of the cars. The descent is deafeningly silent, but of course every juvenile thought going through the kids’ heads is going to be plastered all over social media in the next hour.
When we reach the lobby, they spill out, rushing to the parking lot and shouting at each other. I follow more slowly, then stop to consider the giant purple cock. Just whose idea was it to put that there? It’s such a Ted Lasker move.
My phone pings, and I pull it out.
–Charles: How did it go?
If he’s that curious, why didn’t he do the case himself? Or was it because he knows what the company really does?
Still, he’s the big cheese… So…
–Me: No problems.