Show the girl who came BY JACK woodford hyx i yx copyright W N U CHAPTER X continued 17 dont be silly he answered her a tle sharply ou are the r the work since I 1 found you alp ive done better every day I 1 uld afford now to take care of you a fair degree of luxury just on bat I 1 make myself without havlic course to and s money in fact I 1 ve ready begun to pay him back what ove him lie knows all about you explained all about bow what hap ned before was all my fault and he t believe it af first but he does w bow are you getting along by e way with your stories are you aling them right along so that you ive plenty of money I 1 ve noticed at you looked a little peaked lately for a moment lillta debated her iswar to this question she knew she bad but to intimate that she anted a small loan 1 I m gettig along all right she id him firmly working harder lat s all presently they came to a and down for a chort me they sat in complete silence lota s thoughts drifted back to ie caw the lawn before the big watch bictory where as a little girl she had ayed with other children who came noon to bring their fathers lunched awesomeness lay upon her like a pall recently resent ly she felt atter sons arm bend her along the top of the bench Is arm crept along her forem until it reached her hand she arned and looked at him 1 I love you so be said softly under s breath there was infinite longing i his eyes she made no effort to re st nhen he bent over and kissed her i the lips aching herself inside r some one that she loved she bad t the heart to put him from her ie lay back eyes closed upon his boulder as bis kisses every few mo ants brushed her face 1 I appose it s useless to ask anu aln today to marry me but please t me see you every day even 1 iu don t ever intend to marry me 1 ive to be with you it takes you away om that darned work of yours long adough to assure your getting a little balthy exercise and fresh air you III see me won t you she opened tier ayea and looked into abts ahe expression acre startled and frightened her but vanished almost instantly it was 3 though for a moment the man that e had been had looked out through he eyes of the man that he was she eclied that it had just been a notion f her own and dismissed that thought instantly antly yes ill meet yon at the old place ay after tomorrow and we must go ow its time tor the second mall nd there may be something in it tor ie you re sure you don t need any noney he again asked as they rose 0 hiie told him firmly they walked to where he had parked ils car when be had driven an ay 1 allta hurried home first glance apon entering the house was at the lall tree but though there were adal lonal pieces of mall there showing hat the postman bad made his second all there was nothing for her she to go to her room and work ut the dared not since the landlady wearing her would in all come and ask for the rent she atas a stickler for promptness in als connection going back to the street lillta agnan balked calked toward the park walked through it to the outer arlve which ran along the shore of alie lake and started walking toward town she had no very definite plan of action only grim possessed her she would not give in to in any particular come what might it was iwo thirty and time for the last mall of the day she met the mailman and asked him if there nere anything for her there was not exhausted and weary she decided to go in and have it out with the land lady she walked through the house and out to the kitchen alie landlady a bent and worn old lady of not moro than thirty six old somehow in spite of the obvious fat of her few years looked up from a dishpan full of elslie that you alss forbear she asked bean looking for yuu alt day special ame for you this and 1 knew you were not up so 1 signed for it but when I 1 went to your room you were gone dlan t want to leave it 0 o the liall rack it looked important slie her hands upon her apron fished a long envelope out of some r recess in her dress with trembling finers lillta took the envelope and it open remembering as soon as ehfe saw the name in the upper lefi i hand corner that she bad asked the editor to the cluck fur alie story IT delivery in case they bought H sure enorah there was a check t fifty dollars enclosed it looked a hendred times better huge and green and signed b three names than the first stio chieck that she bad gotten tor her first story she showed it to oe woman tou take my rent out of it could you and give me the differ focer the woman into the pantry took down a rock marked spite extracted a small roll of bills and counted them finally lillta paid two weeks in advance instead of one alme there was not enough money to cash the check otherwise jtb brief thanks to the landlady she turned and made for a fairly flying along slie reached the placa and entered the waiter eyed the rather small and dainty looking girl with astonishment which he could hardly conceal at the order she gae him A steak a large one an order an order not a elde e mind you of lyonnaise lyonn alse potatoes A plate of sliced cucumbers aldort ol dort salad with plenty of nuts and oh yes while im waiting fur the steak bring me a cocktail and some french bread and butter and for desert a piece of coconut custard pie and don 1 forget a pot of tea bring eliat away if iou please it seemed lo 10 HI kisses every few moment crushed her face lillta that it was the most delicious meal she and ever eaten in her life eiery bite troubles doubts wor rles fears dropped away from her she saw herself in s arms bhe saw long vistas of time marked and punctuated only with the receipt of increasingly large checks for stories she saw paper wagons with her name apon them and the title of her serial temptation below her name tn smaller after dinner she walked gaily back her head fairly seething with a new chapter for the serial and a short story to be written before going to bed and gotten off immediately to the publishing company which in the letter accompany ln the check had asked for more material at the corner of the street she stopped at the drug store and bought a package of cigarettes on alie way out the coer of the magazine con s story caught her eye it looked dreadfully interesting slie snatched it from the rack a quarter down upon the counter and walked from the store little knowing that under her arm within the covers of the was the story ol 01 s that would haie made her so happy had she read it that her pros ent would have seemed like the deepest arlet in comparison back in her room she stood for a moment in the center of the loot thumbing through the marine how ever before her eye name a perfect itch to be at the story she had thought of in the hotel room took hold of her she threw the magazine down snatched the cover from her typewriter and set to work furiously CHAl pTER XI the following morning lillta still felt lucky and happy but she that this time she would te more pro dent than abe had been after the ar rival of the last check for she had learned what every beginning author must that checks or never come when needed and that the best time to look or atheni Is when one doean doesn t care whether they come or not going to a neighborhood bank she opened a small savings account sin I 1 decided to be moot nigal with what money she did not deposit in the account later on slie went downtown t take back some books to the library and to tet more she had just dressers Dres lers the genius and been comforted by 11 admitting in all fair nes that if Dies lers picture of life in it was a true one as she had every reason to believe it was lier own ex per lences in comparison had been like lying sprawled upon an glin elsh bed of roses under a bright sun james branch cabella straws and prayer books had begun to make her ee her writing in a mure serious light alinn ever before she knew that her taste was considerably improving and she was beginning to realize that she had as yet but scratched alie surface so far as her understanding of the true meaning of the verb to write was concerned she could now dimly see long vistas of study yet to mine hat would stretch to cover many idars a vista had nu concely able ending it was not like learning et where eventually one tame to the end of the necessary km cledge and then stopped learning there was iier cr an end to it bitterly she estopi ed to reflect that it and slie could have worked tog ellier the years bow beautiful that would have when she had exchanged the books she decided to get a bite to cat before going home and as a familiar tea room was not far away she slipped in there it ans after twelve and the place was jammed with oung raphers as usual trying to look frightfully and male clerks from near by cu to look interestingly danger ous it was somehow nice to be in the restaurant again where she had luncheon so ganv limes in those carefree d ays at the emporium suddenly lillta saw a familiar form weaving its way through the tables and recognized alie girl from the cm borlum who that fateful night in the dance hall had told her for the first time how barvey torrence was mak ing a fool of her the girl saw her and came at once toward the table well tor crying out loud I 1 where did you come from lillta up at her and andl catch the empty chair at the table jeez I 1 went on the newcomer I 1 m glad to ee you I 1 often ast gertrude about you but shea got a mouth like a one way pocket bow did you come out after jour swell friend bumped barvey torrence off jeez that was a good idea on bis part you should ought to of given him a lot of credit for it lillta looked painfully about to see it anyone bud heard no one bad apparently patently ly the other observed her look and towered her voice for cry t kid tell me what you been doing ever since 1 seen you last lillta thought tor a moment oh 1 ve been working hard and trying to be a very good girl in order to wake up for having been a decidedly careless one hal exclaimed the other without humor 1 I tried that once its the bunk it can t be done when you re down the runs over jou waln balked boots I 1 no use pulling that stull what you want to do kid is tet married you re pretty enough to marry about four millionaires seyl joud knock a millionaire use to see ing a lot of dried op society chickens for a row of ash cans eliy don t vou hang around the swell hotels and let one of them pick you up and then say naughty naughty and run every time he makes love to you until be gets crazy and marries you a thought admitted lillta who did not like the girl but who after what she had been through could her sympathies from no one 1 I had been thinking a little of gettan married TO BB CONTINUED |