Daniel appreciated the condition more than the money. Gratitude from someone powerful could turn into a trap if the person receiving it became obligated to agree with everything afterward. He had seen that happen in smaller workplaces. People gained a favor and lost the freedom to challenge the person who gave it.
"I have a daughter," he said. "Nine years old. I need to pick her up from school on Fridays when my sister can't, and I won't promise to be available every night."
Victoria looked at him steadily. "What would you promise?"
"That the work will be done, that I'll tell you before a problem becomes a crisis, and that I won't sacrifice my team to make my numbers look good. I'll also tell you if you ask for something unreasonable."
"Good," she said. "Someone needs to."
He took the folder home without signing it. That surprised the hiring committee more than anything he had said during the interview. Victoria did not urge him to reconsider. She merely handed him Naomi's number and told him he should ask every question he needed before making a decision that would affect his family.
Lily was sitting on the living-room carpet when he arrived. She had arranged colored pencils in a circle and was attempting to draw a fox wearing a bicycle helmet. She looked up at the expression on his face and abandoned the fox without hesitation.
"You got something," she said.
"Maybe."
"That's not a no."
He handed her the folder. She opened it with exaggerated seriousness, then stared at the words on the first page. "Director," she read. "Regional operations. Dad, is that a boss?"
"Apparently."
"A big boss?"
"Big enough that I'm not sure whether they're making a sensible decision."
She considered this. "Maybe they're smart and you don't know it yet." Daniel laughed, then stopped laughing when he saw the salary. Lily followed his gaze and asked whether it meant they could keep their house. He had not realized how much she understood about the bills until she asked the question so plainly.
"It means we might be able to stop worrying quite so much," he said. "But it's still a job. We would have to see whether it's a good place to work."
"Did the lady from the car work there?"
Daniel sat beside her. "She runs it." Lily's eyes widened. "The whole thing?"
"More or less."
"Then she knows you help people. That's good." Lily tapped the company name. "Is she nice?"
Daniel thought about Victoria's composure at the conference table and the way her decision had sent him home believing he had failed. "I don't know yet," he admitted. "I think she's trying to be fair. I want to see what that looks like when things are difficult."