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“That’s how you ask for favors, you just blurt them out? No warmup? No niceties ahead of time.”

“Hi, Millie, what are you up to today?”

I looked around my living room and grinned. It smelled and looked like spring. “I might have gotten carried away and picked a lot of peach blossoms and filled every vase I owned.”

“Only your vases?”

“You got me. Maybe I filled up my pitchers, my watering cans, my mayonnaise jars, and my orange juice bottles.”

“Now this I have to see. And smell. I bet the scent of snickerdoodle cookies would blend nicely with the peach blossoms.”

Damn, he’s right!

“Maybe.”

“Can I ask you a question?”

I frowned. “Sure.”

“Why are you so much more comfortable on the phone than you are in person?”

“Caught that, did you?”

“I’m observant, what can I tell you. So why?”

“I handle gifts and grants for the International Burn Alliance.”

“You’re not a newbie, are you?”

I twisted my hair, then answered. “No.”

“How long have you been doing this?”

“I’ve been working for them since I was seventeen. I got my masters in nonprofit administration online, while I kept working for the NBA. Eventually I worked my way up the food chain.”

“How far?”

Ouch!

I let go of my hair.

“Director,” I admitted.

“How much money do you bring in each year?”

I definitely wanted to sidestep that question. “Let’s talk about you. I hear you have a degree in architectural engineering from University College in London.”

“Been asking around about me, have you?” I could hear the satisfaction in his tone. He sounded smug.

“People around here gossip.”

“I thought you didn’t go into town.”

“I have to get groceries, and sometimes I order food from the restaurants, so I talk to people. I hear things. Speaking of which, are you going to stay and work for Harvey?”

“He and I are talking about things. Right now I’m doing some work for him, and that’s fine. But staying on and working with him is a whole other thing. So far, we still haven’t got things hammered out so that we’re both happy. It’s a work in progress.”

“I heard that he’s chomping at the bit to bring you on. Trust me, you have the upper hand.”