"All right," Pace said.
"Everybody likes to look at a pretty girl," Towne said archly. "Can't blame you for not being happy with only our mugs to look at. That's really the trouble, isn't it?"
"No!" Pace answered.
"Don't kid me," Towne said. "Don't forget, I'm the Personal Affairs Officer. I know what you guys are interested in. That's the big beef on the belt—dames."
"It's not just that," Pace said painfully.
"Sure—"
"It's not! It's—" Pace looked disgusted. He picked up an object from the table and turned it in his hand.
"What's that, Pace?"
The man jiggled it in his palm. "A carving. I've been doing some carving. Only this coal-type mineral."
"Let's see it."