“Rather fancy her meself,” he said, his small green eyes lighting up. “Think she’s a proposition?”
George scowled at him. “Oh, dry up,” he snapped. “Can’t you get your mind off women for five minutes?”
Robinson gave him a sneering, amused smile. “Funny bloke, aren’t you, George?” he said, taking out a crumpled packet of Woodbines. ” ’Ere, have a smoke. The trouble with you, me boy, is you’re repressed. You’re scared of sex, and if you ain’t careful, it’ll fester inside you, and then anything may happen. Me—I’m as free as the air. It’s just a cuppa tea to me. When I want it, I have it, and that way it don’t do me any ’arm.”
George lit his cigarette, cleared his throat and produced a big envelope from the “poacher’s” pocket he had had made inside his coat.
“Now then,” he said. “Let’s see what I’ve got to do.” He took from the envelope a packet of printed forms and a sheet of paper containing the addresses of the local schools. “I’m planting more forms this afternoon. I’ve to collect others from Radlet Road school. Ought to get something from them, and this evening I’ll make some calls.”
Robinson glanced down the list of addresses and grunted. “All right,” he said. “Still working Wembley? Where are you going next?”
“Alperton, Harlesden and Sudbury,” George returned. “I’ve got it all doped out. There’s a good bunch of council houses in all those districts, and they haven’t been worked for some time now.”
“I almost forgot,” Robinson said, blowing a thin stream of smoke to the ceiling. “I’ve taken on a new salesman Thought I’d put him under your wing, George. You can show him the ropes, and he’ll be company for you.”
“You mean you want me to train him?” George asked eagerly, his big face lighting up.
Robinson nodded. “That’s the idea,” he said. “He’s new to the game, and you know all the tricks by now; so I thought you might as well give me a hand.”