Then he insulted her prized pooch (a Lhasa Apso) and Roger found himself, well, screwed. What was going to be his biggest commission to date was now a Greek tragedy in the making. Only in this story there wouldn’t be a deus ex machina to untangle the nasty plot turn.

Chapter II
Sitting across from Mrs. Tuttle, Roger wants to disappear into his chair. But in a moment of gathering resolve, he realizes that he has got to get his act together and write the ending he wants, the one where he walks of into the sunset with Mrs. Tuttle’s money.

But how? Flattery?

His fulsome praise seems to only harden Mrs. Tuttle’s steely gaze. She’s not buying it. She knows he doesn’t give a hoot about her Burberry hand bag and whether it matches the dog’s coat. She knows he’s scrambling to save face. Still, she gives him one last shot…

Chapter III
Roger falls on his sword.

“I’m sorry, Mau—Mrs. Tuttle,” he says. “I want to apologize for calling your dog a … a ‘drop-kick dog.’ Please understand that it was a lame attempt at humor, and I would never ever actually do—or encourage anyone else to do—such a thing.”

She looks at him with bitter skepticism, but it’s an improvement from the pure disdain of seconds earlier. He takes it as his cue to keep talking.

“I, I started us off on the wrong foot and hope you can forgive me. If you’re still interested—and I understand if you want to turn around and march out of here with Fluffy—if you’re still interested I would love to make it up to you by helping you get the insurance you need at a price you can afford.”

Chapter IV
She looks at Roger, still not uttering a word. But he detects in those eyes an almost amused look. A look that says, “You’re not out of the woods yet, young man, but keep talking and maybe, just maybe, I won’t tell your parents about this little episode.”

Roger exhales.

Morals:
Don’t insult your prospect
Don’t give up when it looks like all is lost
Know when to own up to mistakes