Zachary quickly thumbed through the dictionary. “You’ve got to be joking! ‘Xenogamy’ isn’t a word.”

“What do you mean it ’isn’t a word’? Valarie’s face reddened. “Unfortunately for you, you’re wrong.”

“Transfer pollen,” he said earmarking the page. “So it is a word.”

“Ralph Waldo Emerson said,” she continued. “Quoting him as best as I can remember – ‘Peace cannot be achieved through violence, it can only be attained through understanding.’”

“Okay? Now what does that have to do with anything?”

“Maybe you should sit down while I explain.”

“Listen,” he said anxiously, “I think you’re making a bigger deal out of this…”

“Keep yourself calm, Zac.”

“Just say it! Insisting I sit is stupid!” His eyes grew large. Going into the den, he sat the dictionary on a shelf. “For gods sake, spit it out!”

“Even still, I think you should…”

“Darn it, Val! Can’t you just say it? Besides, we both know it.”

“Alright then, Mr. Von Alphabetische, you’ve been Scrabbled.”