Chip studied Ivan’s eyes and his calm demeanor, and he realized that he was unwavering. Ivan meant what he said, and a man had to respect that. So Chip stuck out his hand for an honorable handshake.

“You’re right.” He paused and stood there bewildered for a second. “Well, let’s get back to work, then,” he commented. “We’re still on Hutch and Mitchell time.”

Chip still managed to slip his wicked sarcasm into the mix. All Ivan could do was laugh about it…for the moment. But like he had told himself, he had other plans now.

Three

Black Network Parties

SO, YOU’RE TELLING ME that you’re going to start promoting parties now? I mean, come on, Ivan, are you serious? You’ve never even thrown a party before.”

Catherine was crystal clear over the speakerphone. She made Ivan’s idea sound preposterous. But he was adamant and all smiles while sitting on his sofa explaining it to her.

“Do you like the company name, at least?”

“I mean, the name is catchy, yes. But…throwing parties is a lot more than a catchy promoter name, Ivan,” she warned him. “And I thought you told me you couldn’t even get in the party.”

“I couldn’t. But that’s what gave me the idea to throw my own.”

Ivan was excited by the challenge.

Catherine sighed over the phone. She really sounded concerned. She said, “You’re not gonna quit your accounting job for this, are you?”

Ivan frowned at the assumption. “Hell, no, I’m not gonna quit my job. Why would I do that? This is the first time I’ve had the freedom to work my money.”

“Okay, I’m just checking. Don’t bite my head off,” she told him. She said, “Well, if you’re gonna start throwing parties like that, then maybe you should start off with, like…after-work network parties or something. Just start with something small. You know what I mean?”

Ivan thought it over and said, “Network parties? How am I gonna make any money off of that? People don’t pay for those. That’s just the bar making money.”

“Well, invite somebody out that they’ll pay to see, then. Get some of the Padres to talk about the lack of black players in baseball or something. I don’t know.”

Ivan thought about that idea as well. He said, “You think I can get Butch and Deke to come out for an after-work crowd? I mean, they got practice and games around that time.”

“Look, Ivan, it was only a suggestion. But I think this whole thing is crazy, if you ask me,” Catherine snapped.

“All right, well, the first thing I need to do is get my logo and website together. So I’m meeting up with a couple of college guys this weekend to run my ideas past them,” Ivan told her.