[sethrin]

I work freelance. When someone wants a price from me, they want a number. It might not be the number they want to hear. It might not be an accurate number. A lot of the time, it won't be the actual number used, and it will probably not have any relation to the final invoice. There are an infinity of reasons why you might not give someone a number when they ask for a price, and they're all irrelevant.

It's okay to qualify the number. "Ten million dollars, but order now and..."

If you'll note, your customer just said the same thing I did. Listen to him.