"What do you expect me to do?" I asked. "See Richmond. Make a deal with him. He can get rid of them for us." "Gold's the boss." "Then see Gold. He won't turn down a quarter-million dollars' worth of merchandise." "You could see him yourself." "That's just it, I can't." "Why not?" "Look at it this way: We've got the stuff. They'll want it, but it takes a man to talk that kind of business, and you're clever. You can make them listen to you." "But why me?" "You're in a jam, and—well, something about you makes me trust you. I know you wouldn't cheat me or hurt me. I like you. I guess I like you more than any man I've met in a long time." Her lips were suddenly close to mine and the heat of her breath brushed my nose, then two fiery petals touched my mouth and clung moistly, while the age-old message surged through my body, reminding me that I was a boy. "Think about it, darling," she whispered huskily. "It's the chance of a lifetime, for both of us." When my toes stopped curling, I thought about it.
