"Hello?"
"Beth, this is Abner Harris."
"How are you? Everything under control? I'm waiting for you."
Hesitantly he said, "I'm fine now. But—Beth, I don't know how to say this—will you believe me when I say that a friend of mine just phoned, and wants me to meet him right away downtown?"
"Now? But it's after eleven!"
"I know. He's—a strange sort."
"I thought you didn't have any friends on Earth, Major Harris. You said you were lonely."
"He's not really a friend. He's a business associate. From IDC."
"Well, I'm not accustomed to having men stand me up. But I don't have any choice, do I?"
"Good girl. Make it a date for breakfast in the morning instead?"