While he munched on his breakfast of bran flakes and instant coffee, Jake turned to the cable news networks. No mention of Tomlinson on the national level. Well, he said to himself, they’ll start to notice him when he announces he’s running against Leeds. He got up from the kitchen counter and went to his desk. The digital edition of the local newspaper had Tomlinson splashed across its front page, with a long sidebar about MHD. Jake was only mildly surprised to see Bob Rogers’s byline on the sidebar.

His morning class on planetary astronomy went well. The eight students were all motivated, interested. Two of them were helping Jake with his proposal for the high-resolution camera on NASA’s next Mars lander. Somehow, though, Jake didn’t find the class as exciting as the buzz about Tomlinson. Politics can be exciting, he thought, even while he was reviewing imagery from one of the little roving vehicles trundling across the frozen red desert sands of Mars. I helped to make headlines!

Once he got back to his office he phoned Glynis Colwyn to ask her to lunch.

She sounded wary. “I’m not sure I ought to be seen with you, Jake.”

“Huh? Why not?”

“Professor Sinclair isn’t happy about Tomlinson’s spouting off,” she said.

“Oh. I’m persona non grata, eh?”

“Decidedly.”

“Are you sore at me?”

“Me?” She sounded genuinely surprised. “Why would I be upset with you?”

“Well, if Sinclair’s pissed off…”

“Don’t be silly. I think what you’ve done is fine. Tim’s ecstatic about it.” Her voice hesitated a moment. “Well, as ecstatic as he allows himself to be.”

Jake laughed. “Okay, then. Come on to lunch with me. We can go back to Danny’s, off campus.”

Slowly, she replied, “I usually have lunch with Tim, you know. When he’s not up in Lignite.”

“Bring him along. Bring Bob Rogers, too. I need to talk with both of them anyway.”

He could hear the relief in her voice. “All right. Danny’s, you said?”

“Yeah. You know where it is, don’t you?”

“I remember. And I have a GPS in the car. If I can get it to start.”

“Good. See you at Danny’s. Noon.”

“Make it twelve thirty.”

“Okay. Twelve thirty.”

As he hung up, Jake realized that Glynis and Tim must be getting serious. And he felt his face hardening into a frown at the thought.

*   *   *

As usual, Jake was early for the lunch date. He sat alone in a booth at the far end of the restaurant, wondering if Glynis would actually show up. Why wouldn’t she? he asked himself. She said she’d bring Tim and Bob with her. He checked his cell phone and then his wristwatch. Twelve thirty-two. Where is she?

Bob Rogers came into the restaurant and looked around. Before Jake could slide out of the booth Rogers spotted him and headed his way.