Jim Yewell picked up the ball instantly. “We were to go; in fact, we got as far as Los Angeles. Then a situation came up which required Walt’s knowledge of Polish. Since we had planned to go together, I arranged to stay on until he would be free to leave.”
Dick nodded in what he desperately hoped was a casual manner and retreated, shaking, to his room. David MacDonald was there, busy with a slide rule. d**k flung himself onto his bed. “I just made a complete a*s of myself,” he said firmly, “and it may be a whole lot worse than that.”
Dave laid down the slide rule and turned around. “What was so bad?” he asked.
“I walked into the lobby a couple of minutes ago and found Jim Yewell and Walt Kowolchek there with some other guy I don’t know. I rushed up, opened my big mouth, and asked them w
