Kat’s eldest brother was with his girlfriend, who obviously came from serious money. She was way out of his league. If David had been ten years older, he would’ve thrown out his bro-code rule of not going after women who were seeing other guys and made a run at her.
The younger of her brothers was the quiet, studious type. David quickly figured out that Seth watched everything. David suspected that people underestimated the guy, a mistake he didn’t plan on making. Seth didn’t have a date, either by design or because he wasn’t seeing anyone right now. David thought it might be by design because Daniel, Kat’s ex, was seated next to him.
One surprise was that David didn’t instantly dislike Kat’s ex. Daniel was, in general, a good-natured guy. It was evident, though, that he was also a clueless college kid. He had clearly grown up with a silver spoon up his butt and had no idea how the real world worked. David would have liked to be there when he was finally on his own and had to worry about paying for food, rent, and utilities.
“Daniel, tell Kat what you’re doing this summer,” Sandra prompted.
David glanced over at his date and saw her fidget at her mom’s clear objective to get the two of them back together. He reached under the table and took her hand. Kat gave him a quick look of thanks.
“I’m going to Belize to do volunteer work.”
’Oh, boy,’ David thought.
This sounded like the college-age missionaries at his old church. They would come in and beg for money so they could go to some sunny locale and spread the word when they actually planned to work on their tans.
“I want to do something more with my life. I don’t want to become just another consumer contributing to all the bullshit that our society values. You know, like fancy cars, the idea of celebrity and followers and all that shit. I resent it,” Daniel said, looking right at David for the last part.
David’s Alpha Male peeked out and chuckled at what it saw, but that didn’t mean he didn’t cause David to look Daniel right in the eye.
“What happened to you working for the firm this summer?” James asked.
“Who’s paying for this?” Ethan asked.
Daniel ignored Kat’s dad.
“The organization sponsoring us got a grant with the help of Grandpa Hatley. He slipped it into the most recent spending bill,” Daniel shared.
“What exactly are you doing?” Kat asked skeptically.
“We hand out information for the International Health Organization a couple of hours a day as we travel the country. It’s to further increase the IHO’s impact on global health. To do that, we’ll provide information to different levels of government to ensure that health is placed firmly on their political agendas. Last summer, they went to Honduras and had a blast,” Daniel said proudly.
David had heard enough about how his tax dollars were going to be put to use this summer. He was sure part of that agenda was to line the pockets of the IHO in the process of their ‘helping’ to fulfill the politicians’ promises. Kat was lucky to get away from this guy. Daniel might not be a bad guy to hang with, but she could do better.
“I’m going to go network,” David announced.
“Do what?” Daniel asked.
“Meet everyone here. You don’t think people pay money to come here just for the opportunity to give cash to your grandfather, do you? It’s a great way to connect and possibly do business with other successful people,” David said.
“Oh,” was Daniel’s insightful response.
“Why don’t James, Seth, and I join you? It will give Katherine a chance to catch up with Daniel,” Sandra suggested.
Kat nodded her agreement, so David led them all from the table.
Sandra was pleased with herself for throwing Kat and Daniel together. She was even happier to show off David. He quickly realized it must be a real feather in her bonnet to have snagged a celebrity for this event.
When there was a lull, James stopped David so they could talk.
“Kat has been going through something which has us all confused. Do you have any idea why she has suddenly rebelled?”
David cocked his head sideways for a moment to check whether James was putting him on. Then he took in the expressions on her mom’s and brother’s faces and figured out they had no idea what Daniel had done or said to her. Usually, he would beg off, but he had a feeling they needed to know.
“There are a couple of reasons. For one, Kat found out that Daniel was seeing other girls while they were dating,” David shared.
“Boys will be boys,” Sandra said to cover for Daniel.
Before she could say more, David held up his hand. It didn’t surprise him that she wouldn’t care about Daniel cheating. David had found that attitude more often than he liked. But it wasn’t up to him to judge how people lived their lives.
“Daniel also told her that he would prefer her to be barefoot and pregnant. That way, her family could save money on her education, and she could become a simple housewife. He also said that you didn’t want her at the firm because ... and let me quote... ‘it was man’s work,’” David said.
Sandra turned on her husband, who was suddenly an interesting shade of red.
“Tell me you didn’t say that, Dad,” Seth pleaded.
That started a shouting match in the middle of the fundraiser, which drew the attention of Senator Hatley. When he came over, Sandra pulled it together for a moment.
“Roland, I’m sorry, but we have to go. I’ll call you in the morning when I get the numbers on tonight.”
She grabbed her husband and marched him over to their table. David watched as Sandra said something to Daniel, who paled. His chief supporter had just turned on him. Daniel quickly got up and left the venue. Kat was soon in her mom’s arms, and they led the rest of the family out of the ballroom.
“What was all that about?” Senator Hatley asked.
“Your grandson and James stepped in it. I have a feeling that Sandra will straighten it out,” was all David shared.
Since all of David’s tablemates had left, Senator Hatley had him join their table.
“You’re a movie star and also a college athlete. How are you handling the issue of getting paid while playing?” Senator Hatley asked.
“That’s been a huge hassle. I had to go to Indianapolis, to NCAA headquarters, and meet with them to work it out. In the end, they decided that because I had been making movies before I started school, they would give me a waiver.”
“I’m on the Judiciary Committee, and we are looking at the NCAA’s antitrust exemption. One of the topics that has come up is the new laws that have popped up in several states to allow athletes to get paid. It looks like they’re going to adopt the Olympic model, where student-athletes can earn money with endorsement deals. What are your thoughts on the matter?”
“For me, that’s great. But I see some serious pitfalls moving forward,” David said.
“Like what?”
“The two big ones that raise their head are cheating, and what do we do for the third-string defensive end?”
“Are you suggesting some form of pay-for-play by the universities?” Senator Hatley asked.
“It would solve both problems. With the way they’re talking about rolling this out, big-time boosters will be opening their wallets to have players come to their university to play ball. Instead of the recruit figuring out which school gives them the best chance to succeed, they’ll be asking which one will pay them the most in endorsements.”
“Won’t it just bring what’s happening behind the scenes out into the open?”
“Let me ask you this: what would the Heisman winner be worth? Instead of deciding whether to go pro or not, what if he let it be known that he might be willing to transfer? Could it be more lucrative for him to stay in college? How would his teammates feel about it? More importantly, will it really be college football anymore?” David asked.