Rita Morgan had been my fleet manager for eight years. She was the toughest negotiator in Arizona. Car dealers were scared of her.

“Joe, it's Saturday night,” she said. “What's wrong?”

I told her what had happened at Sterling Motors.

She was quiet for a moment.

“Brent,” she said. “Slim gray suit? Too much cologne?”

“That's him.”

“Joe, Brent is the fleet sales manager. He's the one we're meeting on Monday. Him and somebody called Courtney. They set up the whole deal with me on the phone. He's been calling me every day. He's very excited about his commission.”

I started to laugh.

“How much commission?”

“On a deal this size? Probably a hundred and fifty thousand dollars. Maybe more.”

There was a long pause.

“Joe,” said Rita carefully, “there are other Sterling dealerships. Desert Sterling, in Mesa. Carol Benson owns it. She's been asking me for a meeting for months. Her reviews are great. Everybody says she treats people properly.”

“Call her,” I said. “Tomorrow. Ask if she can match the deal.”

“And Monday?”

“We keep the Monday meeting,” I said. “I want to see something.”