"C M Kornbluth - Gomez" - читать интересную книгу автора (Kornbluth C M)

"Julio," said the girl, when she saw him.

He looked sheepish. "Hello, Rosa. I'm back for a while."

"I'm glad to see you again," she said tremulously.

"I'm glad to see you again too-" I nudged him. "Rosa, this is my good friend Beel. We work together in
Washington."

"Pleased to meet you, Rosa. Can you have dinner with us? I'll bet you and Julio have a lot to talk over."

"Well, I'll see . . . look, there's a table for you. I'll see if I can get away."

We sat down and she flagged down the proprietress and got away in a hurry.

All three of us had arroz con polio-rice with chicken and lots of other things. Their shyness wore off and
I was dealt out of the conversation, but I didn't mind. They were a nice young couple. I liked the way
they smiled at each other, and the things they remembered happily-movies, walks, talks. It made me feel
like a benevolent uncle with one foot in the grave. It made me forget for a while the look on Gomez's face
when he turned from the blackboard he had covered with too-simple math.

Over dessert I broke in. By then they were unselfconsciously holding hands. "Look," I said, "why don't
you two go on and do the town? Julio, I'll be at the Madison Park Hotel." I scribbled the address and
gave it to him. "And I'll get a room for you. Have fun and reel in any time." I rapped his knee. He looked
down and I slipped him four twenties. I didn't know whether he had money on him or not, but anything
extra the boy could use he had coming to him.

"Swell," he said. "Thanks." And looked shame-faced while I looked paternal.

I had been watching a young man who was moodily eating alone in a corner, reading a paper. He was
about Julio's height and build and he wore a sports jacket pretty much like Julio's. And the street was
pretty dark outside.

The young man got up moodily and headed for the cashier's table. "Gotta go," I said. "Have fun."

I went out of the restaurant right behind the young man and
walked as close behind him as I dared, hoping we were being followed.

After a block and a half of this, he turned on me and snarled: "Wadda you, mister? A wolf? Beat it!"

"Okay," I said mildly, and turned and walked the other way. Hig-gins and Dalhousie were standing
there, flat-footed and open-mouthed. They sprinted back to the Porto Bello, and 7 followed them. But
Julio and Rosa had already left.

"Tough, fellows," I said to them as they stood in the doorway. They looked as if they wanted to murder
me. "He won't get into any trouble," I said. "He's just going out with his girl." Dalhousie made a strangled
noise and told Higgins: "Cruise around the neighborhood. See if you can pick them up. I'll follow
Vilchek." He wouldn't talk to me. I shrugged and got a cab and went to the Madison Park Hotel, a
pleasantly unfashionable old place with big rooms where I stay when business brings me to New York.
They had a couple of adjoining singles; I took one in my own name and the other for Gomez.