"To be honest, I think I would."
"Certainly. He"s your type. You"re not mine; Belle is. Well, that b.u.t.tons it up, Brownie, except for one thing. To Jim and Belle and everyone else, we"re paired."
"Of course. Urbanity, as well as to present a united front to any and all worlds."
"Check. So watch your shield."
"I always do. That stuff is "way, "way down. I"m awfully glad you called me "Brownie," Clee. I didn"t think you ever would."
"I didn"t expect to--but I never talked to a woman this way before, either. Maybe it had a mellowing effect."
"You don"t _need_ mellowing--I do like you a lot, just exactly as you are."
"If true, I"m very glad of it. But don"t strain yourself; and I mean that literally, not as sarcasm."
"I know. I"m not straining a bit, and this"ll prove it."
She kissed him again, and this time it was a production.
"That was an eminently convincing demonstration, Brownie, but don"t do it too often."
"I won"t." She laughed, gayly and happily. "If there"s any next time, you"ll have to kiss me first."
She paused and sobered. "But remember. If you should change your mind, any time you really want to ... to kiss me, come right in. I won"t be as silly and nervous and afraid as I was just now. That"s a promise. Good night, Clee."
"Good night, Brownie."
CHAPTER 2
Next morning, Garlock was the last one, by a fraction of a minute, into the Main. "Good morning, all," he said, with a slight smile.
"Huh? How come?" James demanded, as all four started toward the dining nook.
Garlock"s smile widened. "Lola. She brought me a pot of coffee and wouldn"t let me out until I drank it."
"_Brought?_"
"Yeah. They haven"t read their room-tapes yet, so they don"t know that room-service is practically unlimited."
"Why didn"t I think of that coffee business a couple of years ago?"
"Well, why didn"t I think of it myself, ten years ago?"
Belle"s eyes had been going from one, man to the other. "Just _what_ are you two talking about? If it"s anybody"s business except your own?"
"He is an early-morning grouch," James explained, as they sat down at the table. "Not fit to a.s.sociate with man or beast--not even his own dog, if he had one--when he first gets up. How come you were smart enough to get the answer so quick, Brownie?"
"Oh, the pattern isn"t too rare." She shrugged daintily, sweeping the compliment aside. "Especially among men on big jobs who work under tremendous pressure."
"Then how about Jim?" Belle asked.
"Clee"s the Big Brain, not me," James said.
"You"re a lot Bigger Brain than any of the men Lola"s talking about,"
Belle insisted.
"That"s true," Lola agreed, "but Jim probably is--must be--an icebox raider. Eats in the middle of the night. Clee probably doesn"t. It"s a good bet that he doesn"t nibble between meals at all. Check, Clee?"
"Check. But what has an empty stomach got to do with the case?"
"Everything. n.o.body knows how. Lots of theories--enzymes, blood sugar, endocrine balance, what have you--but no proof. It isn"t always true.
However, six or seven hours of empty stomach, in a man who takes his job to bed with him, is very apt to uglify his pre-breakfast disposition."
Breakfast over and out in the Main:
"But when a man"s disposition is ugly all the time, how can you tell the difference?" Belle asked, innocently.
"I"ll let that pa.s.s," Garlock"s smile disappeared, "because we"ve got work to do. Have any of you thought of any improvement on Lola"s monogamous society?"
No one had. In fact--
"There may be a loop-hole in it," Lola said, thoughtfully. "Did any of you happen to notice whether they know anything about artificial insemination?"
"D"you think I"d stand for _that_?" Belle blazed, before Garlock could begin to search his mind. "I"d scratch anybody"s eyes out--if you"d thought of that idea as a woman instead of as a near-Ph.D. in anthropology you"d"ve thrown it into the converter before it even hatched!"
"Invasion of privacy? That covers it, of course, but I didn"t think it would bother you a bit." Lola paused, studying the other girl intently.
"You"re quite a problem yourself. Callous--utterly savage humor--yet very sensitive in some ways--fastidious...."
"I"m not on the table for dissection!" Belle snapped. "Study me all you please, but keep the notes in your notebook. I"d suggest you study Clee."
"Oh, I have been. He baffles me, too. I"m not very good yet, you...."
"That"s the unders...."
"_Cut_ it!" Garlock ordered, sharply. "I said we had work to do. Jim, you"re hunting up the nearest observatory."
"How about transportation? No teleportation?"
"Out. Rent a car or hire a plane, or both. Fill your wallet--better have too much money than not enough. If you"re too far away tonight to make it feasible to come back here, send me a flash. Brownie, you"ll work this town first. Belle and I will have to work in the library for a while. We"ll all want to compare notes tonight...."
"Yeah," James said into the pause, "I could tune in remote, but I don"t know where I"ll be, so it might not be so good."
"Check. You can "port, but be _d.a.m.n_ sure n.o.body sees or senses you doing it. That b.u.t.tons it up, I guess."