"To what book do you refer?" I asked.
"Mrs. Custer's. You predicted a sale of twenty thousand for it, and it has now been out a full month and——"
"What are the figures for the first month, Mr. Harper?" I interrupted.
"Well, what do you think? It is the first month that sets the pace, you know. What's your guess?"
"Ten thousand," I ventured.
"What? Of that book? In its first month? Are you a rainbow chaser?"
I had caught the glint in his eye, and so I responded:
"Oh, well, if that guess is so badly out I'll double it, and say twenty thousand."
"Do you mean that—seriously?" he asked.
"Yes, quite seriously. So seriously that I'll agree to pay the royalties on all copies short of twenty thousand, if you'll agree to give me a sum equal to the royalties on all copies sold in excess of that number."