"It is." Reno sighed and looked up at the ceiling, next. Hey. Ceiling. Who put that there? "I wasn't thinkin' straight when I was talkin' to him. Tired, hadn't eaten, the rest of it. If I could have a do-over, I'd just tell him I quit and walk out, I think. Maybe. Might not have the guts."

And then he was grinning, again, and looking back at her.

"Why's it always the easy stuff that's the hardest to do? 'No' is just a word, ain't it? If you threw another thesaurus at me, I could even find other words for it. Say the same thing a dozen times."