Bill jumped when Starla hammered the table, almost hanging up the phone until what Clarice was saying filtered through.

"Hey, sorry. He did what? That-- " Biting back a curse and shaking his head, Bill glanced at Starla, then lowered his voice into the phone.

"Clarice, listen, I can't talk. What you did is fine, let him dry out, but y'can't officially handle any calls that come in. Go ahead an' man the desk, but if anything serious comes up, call Dave or Rudy in."