Show 1 BORS 9 ASt tZG ERNEST LYNN I author of THE YEL YELLOW OW STUB BEGIN HERE TODAY John and Fay Milburn to whom h m ma mI I a baby girl has Just been born buy buya a home of their own when the advertising advertising advertising ad ad- agency In which John Is Isa Isa isa a partner and copy writer lands an Important contract Previous chapters told of or the Im Impression Impression ini made on John by Nell Orme whom he met metat at itt a a. swimming party while Fay was in the hospital hos hos- pital pUal and who Is said to be h having trouble with her husband Dr Dick Menefee Johns John's best friend marries Margaret Wayne Van an and Margarets Margaret's younger sister Clifton Clifton Clifton Clif Clif- Clara runs marries ton Lane ne whom John cordially disI dis dis- I likes Ikes A party Is given by Noel arid and Vera Boyd and Vera who is rather keen about John asks him outside Into a closed automobile and starts a flirtation While they are sitting there they both see Noel Do Boyd d kissing another girl but this I indiscretion indiscretion indis indis- on her husbands husband's part does not bother Vera On the way home John tells his wife wIte he is rather disgusted with both Vera and Noel Boyd but Fay intimates that she had seen John Jphn and Vera outside and starts a rel NOW GO ON WITH TH THE E STORY The names names and situations in this story are fictitious CHAPTER Well V ell now what's th the matter he demand demanded d. d x JJohn John you know very ery well Fay answered I saw you iu u and Vera coming in from outdoors Everyone Every Every- Everyone one one else did too for that matter I I suppose What were you doing out there How do you you ou suppose i H It looked to all the the theother other people there I knew it he cried hotly I krew knew Id I'd get blamed for something that wasn't my fault your fault What an fin excuse excuse excuse ex ex- ex- ex cuse I suppose you ar are implying that Vera dragged you outdoors What did you find so interesting that you stayed a half Hour ur John didn't try to correct her about the lime If It Thy Pay had only known it was nearer an hour than thana a half halt hour that he had been out Inthe in inthe I Ithe the automobile with Vera He said No she didn't drag me out as II IINo you say but she sho he did about everything everything everything every every- thing else but drag me I couldn't very well do an anything else He was silent for a. a moment bitIng bitin biting bit bit- in ing his lips Then Ill tell ten you youIa you Ia Fay I I. I might as well vell be perfectly frank about It it Vera told me w wanted t to tell me something about Pat Forbes and Eleanor Mason Mason- Yes I h heard ard about that said Pay Fay coldly Why did she th think she had to tell teU you you and why did she have hae to take you outdoors to tell you Let me me talk will wilt you 1 She said she wanted me to go outside where no one would overhear us us To be frank tranK with yo you you you-I I I hate to Say say it it but Its It's true and youre you're entitled to know I I think Vera tried to start a flirtation He told her about Vera bringing out the bottle of gin and how they had sat in the sedan I suppose interrupted Fay you you j just st fought to get away from her hel Her lip c curled cont lv ly All Au right he flung at her If U you ou want vant to get hot-headed hot about it I did try to get away away I said Raid Vera we mustn't sit out here Somebody will g get t th the wrong Im ln- ln n Suppose Noel saw you But she laughed and pointed to the front door step and there was Noel kissing that little Perkins Perking girl I Itell tell you Fa Fay the w whole thing made me mEa a a little sick of ot the Boyds They seem to think they have ha to flaunt their Infidelity In front of everyone everyone every every- one In order to be be considered smart Fay said nothing more for a long longtime longtime longtime time and they rode rod the rest of the theay way ay home In silence When they were getting ready for bed he tried to speak lightly of some som of the in incidents Iii Iii- of the party b but t she was not flot In In Inthe the mood She was still very ery cross cross J John hn saw saw and It angered him I to think that she sho should ld hold him responsible fo to the ridiculous affair I with Vera Suddenly she voiced the I qt question that apparently had been in her mind for a long th e. e I What did you and Vera do out there Nothing Wei We talked and drank gin Oh and Oh and nd that Wits was s all ll Her tone ton Implied that she thought it was was not Pot all Look here Fay he said pausIng pausing pausing paus paus- ing in the struggle with his sh shOelace shoe shoelace e elace lace Im not a lI liar r and you might as well vell know that I resent r sent being thought a liar 1 I said that was all alland alland all all- and It lt was If H I had wanted it any different rent it probably would have been Yes she broke in cuttingly youre o rc such a Don Juan Junn His fa fade face e redd reddened neil beneath the taunt but he strove io to ke keep p his tem tern per pH Oh all right right kid kid me and he smiled mirthlessly Nevertheless Its It's the truth Vera wanted to flirt ant ami I wouldn't and that's all ll there was to it it If saying so constitutes an all exaggerated ego on my part all allright right The truth of the matter I iscra Is couldn couldn't t tany tany Vera tra doesn't interest me I any more flirt with her than I could with a bl bishop hop Oh I 1 i see bee ee But if it had been someone else you might have hav acted differently Is that It Or are y you u uso so pure that you cant can't be tempted 7 1 Ho He sat up and looked at her for tor fora a along along long time before replying Then he said suld slowly If Jr it had been Homebody somebody somebody some Home body else I dont don't know what I would have done and nd of at a sudden he was thinking of Nell Orme Oh and Fay ay went Avent on straightening straightening straight straight- ht- ht ening her party clothes without glancing back at him This seeming seeming seem Slem ing indifference on her part was all the more more- maddening to him 1 suppose l if It had been Eleanor Masol Masor Ma- Ma MaSOl SOl sor there would have been a different different dif dif dif- ferent story Fay Pay flung at him from the depths of the clo closet et I suppose she has a lot more sex ap appeal appeal appeal ap- ap peal than Vera Oh youre you're thinking like a child now Fay What youre you're saying Is not worth answering You know and I l' l know too too that Vera has all the makings of a vamp But I dont don't like like- her As for Eleanor Mason Mason- she's tomboy and that's about aUas all aU allas alls as s far as I see It if Youre You're being ridic- ridic ulous And another r thing please dont don't bring bring up Eleanor Masons Mason's name again when you want to be sarcastic with me Im I'm tired of hearing hE i It Jt Now for tor or heavens heaven's sake be quiet I 1 wont won't be quiet she cried You had had no business sitting out there therewith therewith therewith with Vera Giving people a chance to gossip about you How do you ou suppose I like It It having having people people people peo peo- speaking of J rue ipe le as poor POOl l Fay ay Milburn Th The first thing you know they'll be pitying me the way they're doing Marian Forbes He answered Impatiently I I dont don't give a damn what they say I tell you Fay I dont don't set myself up as any iny Puritan or any thou than boy but I think Im I'm decent Youre You're that Im I'm not hot Nothing of or the kind she re re- re Im lm trying to tell you youre you're giving people a n chance to misunderstand Well Veil let em misunderstand If they're that hat kind of ot people theres there's no chance of avoiding it Mrs Blodgett saw stubs here and misunderstood probably thinks youre you're a. a nicotine a-nicotine addict Old Lady Bixby misunderstood too but we cant can't go aro around nd adjusting our lives to the whims of or every busybody in town Well WoH you might be a little more careful Its It's not only us us you know Its It's Judith We Ve dont don't want anything anything any any- ny- ny thing to hurt her Her tone had grown more more con conciliatory and he said Fay aY l If you'll just trust me a little more well we'll get along better Ill I'll promise you this that if I ever find myself interested in another to the point where It gets serl serious us Ill I'll let you know John dont don't talk like that I mean it Fay Id I'd want you to todo todo todo do the same Its It's never neer going to happen of course but If it did Id I'd be that fair fall to y you u at least With which declaration he turned out the light and hopped in bed Pat Pat F Forbes called r him up up the next mon with a suggestion that they have lunch together I suppose he said to John Immediately immediately Im im- im mediately aft after r sitting down youve oue heard the gossip About you and Eleanor Vera Boyd told me It wasn't very ery m much ch and he he- told him what Vera had said Well stated Pat leaning forward forward forward for for- ward in his chair Im in rather a ticklish situation at t home Marian 1 heard about it and served notice and she's been as cold as an iceberg ward toward me ever eer since I don't dont know as I can blame her Of course the thing didn't get very ery tar far You know El Eleanor John John John-a kid anor a pretty kid and und one who doesn't care carea a a thing about anything What V hat did Marian larlan do John asked his thoughts reverting to the argument he and Fay had nad had the night before She told me me Id I'd have hae to call a halt Told Eleanor leanor the same thing too on pain of turning it over oer to a lawyer Result was Eleanor and 1 ag agreed e d to disagree dIsagreeS Now Eleanor re regards regards re- re gards me me In about the same light she regards the dirt she walks on These women H He sighed prOfoundly profoundly pro- pro i Was Vas it really serious Pat Pat be be between tween you OU and Eleanor Elean r N Not terribly so You lc know v ov me meI me- me I take my fu fun where I find It If Wrong I know but there you ou are What worries me is how hoV Im I'm g going to to pat patch h it up with Marian 1 Dont Don t ask me Pat and John smiled and shrugged his shoulders Just watch your step that's all ail He Ie switched to another topic and th they finished their r meal in discussion discus ll cus- cus sion slon of oc the tle B Boyds Boyd's ds party J Pawl Faal al Davidson dropped in during th the afternoon to announce tl that it he hewa wa was organizing a poker game for that evening and would John John count himself in Ive Ive g got t a room reserved In a 3 hotel Spoke to o Noel oel Boyd about It and and just us il finished talking to Pat F 1 s on the phone Got another r fellow lined up tentatively but ut Im I'm not sure of him Thought you ou might call cah up Dick Menefee Does he play J Once In a while Jqhn John an an- He used to play a prett stiff game Well WeH if you get him that'll be five fie at least east What do you say O 0 K with me Paul Paul Paul-It If Fay hasn't hant made other plans Ill I'll call can her up right away He did and Fay was willing a aN at though she admonished him to be home at a decent hour At 7 o'clock that evening five o of them them Pat Pat Forbes Davidson Dick Menefee Noel Boyd an and John John John-ad- adjourned adjourned ad ad- to a hotel room room where the tobacco smoke within an hour was VaS thick enough to be cut with a knife and where Dick pleas for foran foran or oran an open window and fresh air all were voted down Davidson had announced It was his hi party and arid he h had d s supplied liquor Under its influence nce tongues were loosened loosened everyone everyone drinking freely Creely except Dick Menefee who feared reared a sick call caU and consequently kept himself in hand hand and and talk grew as unrefined as it was unrestrained strained Noel Boyd was the first to show v the effects of the drinks and rhe he e others with envious glances at his constantly growing pile of chips spoke stoke of at drunkards luck and were frankly uncomplimentary At 10 o'clock Noel with no flo explanation explanation ex ex- at all picked up the phone and called his liis home Not coming hone home home he announced to Vera Staying here all night He hung up and sat down to pick pickup up his cards Forbes cast him a humorous he glance training em em remarked tersely and turning to the others said Imagine telling the wife youre you're staying all night In a notel Just because you dont don't feel like coming home Why not demanded Boyd Id just as soon tell her there was a woman with me if such happened to be the case Yes you would Jeered Pat Dont be a fool Pat said Boyd coloring Of course I would We have a perfectly clear understand understand- ing What either one of ot us does is hl his own business Do you mean to tell ten me Pat went vent on on smiling that it would be beaU beall beall all aU right with you if Vera were to call you ou and say she was staying with an another ther man To Be Continued |