“He does not like you. He likes no woman.”
“Well, he likes my being interested in his orchids. And besides, I wrote him that I had a case for him and would pay him myself. He wouldn’t even talk to me on the phone.”
I looked at her. “What kind of a case?”
A corner of her mouth went up. “Like to know?”
“Go to the devil.”
“Now, Escamillo. Am I your bauble?”
“No.”
“I am too. I like the way your nose twitches when you smell a case. This is about a friend of mine, or anyway a girl I know, named Ann Amory. I was worried about her.”
“I can’t see you being worried about a girl named Ann Amory, or any girl except one named Lily Rowan.”
Lily patted my arm. “That sounds more like you. Anyway, I wanted an excuse to see Nero Wolfe, and Ann was in trouble. All she really wanted was advice. She had found out something about somebody and wanted to know what to do about it.”