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Anyway, it's our last chance at our marriage. You know that.” He looked longingly at her. In his heart, he was almost committed to making this work. Part of him knew it was their last chance to connect.  The other part of him wanted to get her out on the boat so she could have an “accident” and he could be free from her forever.
    He reached over, grabbed her hand and looked into her eyes. At that moment, he saw a glimpse of the coquette he had married. Although she had a few crow's feet surrounded her beautiful blue eyes, he still liked her face. It was the other parts of her personality he couldn’t stand. “Reconnect my ass. I want to be rid of her,” he told himself.
    She looked back lovingly at first. He was a handsome man as well.
    She studied his graying temples and his winning smile. She knew she had loved him too. But that was in the past.  Now she looked at him and noticed his nose hairs, which needed trimming. He was also growing ear hair. How gross. She was such a perfectionist. His imperfections drove her more insane than she already was. In that one brief instant, she knew he had to be replaced by a younger, less-used model.  The thought crystallized a plan. She could use the boat as a lure to attract younger men and be finished with him.
    She turned to John.  “You know you’re right. We do need to get alone together. I’m in for buying a boat if you are.”
    They entered the sales office.
     
    Mac got up from his chair, finished the last bite of his tuna fish sandwich and immediately introduced himself, wiping the mayo from the corners of his mouth with his sleeve.
    “So, you must be John and Stephanie. I’m glad you called.” Mac said sizing them up to see if they might be a good match for what he had to sell. (Basically Mac was doing what he did with all new clients…trying to find out whether or not they had enough money to buy what they said they wanted or whether they wanted to buy at all.)
    His ability to categorize people after only meeting them for a short while had been honed over the past thirty years. This saved him countless hours during the sales process.  Early in his career, he would show any client any boat, which was very inefficient. Now he narrowed the process quickly. If they weren’t interested or couldn’t afford what they were looking for, he would brush them off. If, on the other hand, they could be up-sold, which would be much better for him, he would do that too.
    Mac looked at John's attire first, which gave him a good indication of his potential client’s overall financial status.
    John was dressed in designer jeans, had on a pullover Polo shirt and Sperry Top-siders. His hair was a little bit over his ears, but he was well kept (except for his nose hairs). His fingernails were clean, and his hands were very soft. This indicated to Mac that John was not a sailor, nor was he an outdoorsman by his pale skin, which likely hadn’t seen the sun in years.  The six-carat heart-shaped diamond on Stephanie’s hand was an additional clue as to their wealth. He turned his attention to the parking lot and noticed a brand new Maserati Quattroporte GTS.
    “Is that your car?” he asked.
    “Yes,” John answered with pride. “It had a list price of over $140k and has a maximum speed of over 190 miles per hour.  I got it for $120K.” John boasted, setting himself up as a shrewd negotiator.
    Seeing the car gave him all the information Mac needed.
    They were obvious candidates for upselling. 
    They had money.
    They didn’t know boats.
    And they were in his yacht brokerage.
    How perfect was that?
    He turned his attention to Stephanie. She was a very attractive brunette, 5 foot 6, 105 pounds, and obviously well taken care of. He noticed the original Gucci handbag she clutched. Her French nails were perfect. Her hair was perfect. She was gorgeous. Also, her triceps had little to no overhang of flab and seemed to be sculpted from hours at the gym. She probably had the