lot of people. Then we drive out to the country, and when Julie sees this great gang knocking about the place she'll never pay any special attention to anyone in particular. She'll never notice me."

"That's ridiculous," Marc said. "In the first place I doubt I'd ever be able to hire the bus privately."

"From the looks of business," Hotstuff said, "you could probably have it for a song."

"Even so," Marc said doggedly, "we are not a crowd. We are only two people, and I'm positive Julie is quite capable of picking a strange young lady out of a group of two."

"I'd be very happy to accompany you," Hotstuff said. "In fact I insist on it, so's I can protect my investment."

"There!" Toffee said. "We're forming a crowd already. All we need are about twenty more."

"And where are we going to get them?" Marc asked serenely.

"I could have a number of my business acquaintances and their—uh—molls—out here on the corner in a flash," Hotstuff offered obligingly. "I know a number of personalities who are quite hot to get out of town for various reasons."

"Go get them!" Toffee said. "We'll hire the bus while you're gone."

"Now, just a second...." Marc yelled, but Hotstuff had already scurried off down the street toward the corner poolhall.

The deal for the bus was concluded in almost the same instant that Marc approached the gangling individual on the sidewalk.

"Sure, mister," the man said sadly. "Why not? A day in the country would suit me fine. You can have the bus and me for whatever you want to offer, and you can bring along all the friends you want."

Marc fatefully handed over a couple of bills and glanced, not without apprehension, down the street. "The others should be along any moment now," he said. He turned to Toffee. "Just how are we going to explain all these people to Julie. We can't just say I asked them out for dinner."

"Well, then," Toffee said, "we'll just say you're a group of botany students on a field trip." As though that satisfactorily explained everything she started into the bus. "Heigh, ho! Oh, for a day of biology in the open air!"

"I thought you said botany," Marc said, uneasily.

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