“Care Bears.”

Lori looked up from a script she was editing, surprised to see me in her office doorway at eight-thirty in the morning. “I thought you’re a night owl.”

“Some things can’t wait.” I paused, then decided it was my turn to have a little fun with her. “If you didn’t hear me I can shout it at the top of my lungs.”

She grumbled, “Didn’t I say to stick to writing and stay away from business?”

I teased, “You’re the one who sent me on the hunt.”

She waved me in, telling me to close the door. I did, sitting in a chair across from her desk. Then she turned uncharacteristically serious and warned me not to talk to anyone about this because the deal wasn’t closed yet.

Giving me kudos for having figured it out, Lori allowed, “It does look like we’re getting Care Bears.” I’m delighted for her and Andy and Jean. When I told her I know it’s a major kids’ property she nodded and said, “It’ll put DIC on the map.”

I knew it would be disingenuous if I didn’t ask, so I did. “Does that mean I’ll be writing Care Bears scripts?”

She hit me with an answer I wasn’t expecting. “Maybe…maybe not.”

We’d moved three spaces on the board and now she’d reminded me she held all the aces. But I still had a few cards of my own, so I played one by not asking her what she meant. Lori leaned back in her chair, smiled and said, “You are a smart boy, aren’t you?”