So intent had the young people been upon their conversation that they failed to observe a waiter hovering near. Nor did it occur to them that he might be listening. As Jerry chanced to glance toward him, he bowed, and moving forward, presented the bill.
“Howling cats!” the reporter muttered after the waiter had discreetly withdrawn. “Will you look at this!”
“How much is it?” Penny asked anxiously. “We only had three ham sandwiches.”
“Two dollars cover charge. Three sandwiches, one dollar and a half. Tip, fifty cents. Grand total, four dollars, plus sales tax.”
“Why, that’s robbery!” Penny exclaimed. “I wouldn’t pay it, Jerry.”
“I can’t,” he admitted, slightly abashed. “I only have three dollars in my pocket. Then I’ll have to buy my hat back from the checkroom girl.”
“Louise and I haven’t any money either,” Penny said. “Thirty-eight cents to be exact.”
“Thirty-three,” corrected her chum.
“Tell you what,” said Jerry after a moment of thought. “You girls stay here and hold down the chairs. I’ll go outside and telephone one of the boys at the office. I’ll have someone bring me some cash.”
Left to themselves, the girls tried to act as if nothing were wrong. However, they were very conscious of the waiter’s scrutiny. Every time the man entered the dining room with a tray of food, he gazed suggestively at the unpaid bill.