Believe it or not, I was getting a kick out of this girl. Me, getting a kick out of a girl. I could hear forty thousand floozies turning over in their graves.
We went down in the elevator. I said, “Suppose we go to Sloppy Joe’s?”
She laughed. “I’d love to… where is it?”
I jerked my head at a taxi. “It’s a dollar ride downtown,” I said.
The yellow taxi drew up and the driver swung the door open. He took one look at the girl and gave me a wink. “I’ll drive nice an’ slow, Capt.,” he said.
These taxi guys were a big help sometimes. I helped her in. “Sloppy Joe’s, Buddy,” I said, “an’ just shut your window, will you?”
“Sure, Capt.,” he said with a leer, “an’ I won’t look round. You go ahead an’ enjoy yourself.”
I got into the bus just a trifle flustered. I saw from a mischievous smile that she’d heard all right.
“These guys’ve got low minds,” I said, settling down in the far corner. “Maybe we ought to know each other. I’m Nick Mason… I believe I’ve said that before.”
She said, “I’m Mardi Jackson.”