Show E F FICTION I 1 CT ION CORNER KITTENS HAVE CLAWS etsa by FAITH ELLEN SMITH VE got to go after them dons doris said she sat on the upholstered wall seat opened her bag took out her vanity case and her case that s the trouble with you you re mousy I 1 in what nan asked she sat on the stiff hard chair on the other tide side ol 01 the little table and took off her gloves they were white gloves rubbed shabby by repeated clean tags ings mousy said dons doris mousy girls never get anywhere rebern ber her what I 1 said that first day we saw ralph going up in the eleva tor you said there s the man I 1 m going to marry unless he s got a wife and ten kids dons doris studied her reflection in the mirror of her vanity her hand long crimson nails gleaming patted this the c crisp r I 1 s p blonde beneath her nr waves week week S small hat A large best diamond on her fin ger kindled to fiction green and orange flame under the subdued lights of the dining room well he had a wife and one kid but I 1 did it didn dian t I 1 ia do you sup pose I 1 got him by sitting still and wishing tor for him hum no nan said I 1 used my head I 1 found out he worked for J B simpson I 1 made up to the simpson crowd when I 1 met them in the washroom and took to calling tor for that dumb egg of an adams girl for lunch I 1 got intro deuced to him I 1 remember nan said I 1 worked to get that man if I 1 hadn haan t I 1 wouldn t have an apart ment on east si sixtieth bieth street and this set of summer furs that cost fifteen hundred dollars and my own car and a house in the country next fall when ralph gets his promotion now about this man she said what man said nan color of a newly open wild rose flooded her face her childishly honest brown eyes were starry how should I 1 know what man I 1 haven t seen you since I 1 had you to the wedding six months ago A girl that g s attractive to men and shows some initiative might be married in fix six months but of course you re the kind that will drag along waiting tor for him to wake up and know youre you re on earth until he marries somebody else you wouldn t be so bad at thal if you took a little pains with yourself and got some decent clothes nan who had started to slip off the coat of her suit buttoned it again the lining she remembered had ripped a little on the shoulder and you d be a good bet tor for some man who wanted a sensible economical wife that t mind housework thank you nan said you would I 1 never could learn to boil water but the way you used to cook and scrub and fuss around when we lived together I 1 well it s lucky I 1 had what it takes to get a fellow that can afford a servant but of course I 1 m younger than you are eleven months nan said softly just a baby really ralph always calls roe me babe did I 1 tell you he s in line for the vice presidency Is hea he old maid living on a pension and loving a pet cat I 1 don t like cats nan mur aured dons doris extended a toeless suede sandal and a slender silk clad leg cats amsl sh she said look at that run I 1 see it nan said ralph bought me an angora kit ten for my birthday the dam darn thing must have been at these stockings ill I 1 have to dash in somewhere and get another pair and put them on you come with me and you can have these they 11 do tor for you if you re careful mending them I 1 can cant t come with you nan said you can t why not I 1 ve got a a kind of A a date A date with that man of course I 1 where oh never mind nial wo 0 1 11 4 1 ay f 1 T W k 1 V ae ak U 96 there s the man I 1 ni going to marry unless he s got a wife and 10 kids now sure of it my dear dearl J B de on him for everything he and J B are like that re member the fellow came up to the apartment with him the week be tore fore we were 7 9 of 01 course why wouldn t I 1 well you doused around as if you were only halt half there hardly opened your mouth all evening that was J B was it there you go that s just what I 1 mean you don t take any inter est now it if this man but what makes you think there is a it s written all over you darling you re in love I 1 never saw a worse case nan s big brown eyes lowered to her glass she became peony red well it if you don t see fit to con fide in your best friend that s your business but you let me tell you this for your own good it if he s worth having dont don t let some other girl beat you to it you will though you re all set for being a neat little don t be siliyl I 1 in dying to see him drive you there you needa t bother it isn t far just back to the office oh ohl dons doris said waiter bring the check we re in a hurry didn t I 1 tell youa you nobody but you would think of slaving away at the office on a lovely sa saturday after noon you ought to call your man and make him take you to the movies you ought to keep after him I 1 in ready nan said they walked out of the dim cock tad tail lounge into the sunny freshness of the afternoon I 1 guess I 1 U get my stockings over there at bryand s dons doris said we have charge accounts at all the big stores if I 1 buy them at some little shop I 1 have to pay for them myself and they cost five dol lars you don t mind it if I 1 don t drive you to the office do youa I 1 don t mind at all nan said extending her hand good bye dons doris I 1 give you a ring dons said you must come up to dinner some night when I 1 haven t company and tell me all about your romance I 1 il be seeing you nan walked the two familial familiar blocks to the familiar building but she did not go up to the office where she worked she took the elevator to the floor below it and stepped out into the spacious reception room ol 01 the J B simpson company she walked past the deserted informs tion desk toward the private offices and tapped lightly on an one of the doors with the tips of her gloved fingers A man s voice called come ml ini she went in the man got up from behind a big desk and came to meet her he was tall and becomingly gray haired there were laughter wrin kles around his keen eyes you re late nan he said she put her arms around his shoulders and lifted her face for his kiss I 1 ve been with mrs jen jeri kins who in seventeen kingdoms is mrs jenkins you know the girl I 1 used to live with the one that married ralph jenkins oh ohl he said how is ralph jenkins by the way he was a good man until that designing cat got hold of him the man said now he has alimony to pay one woman and another run rung ning him ragged for new cars and this and that and he 11 be lucky it if he manages to keep his job I 1 hope you re not seeing much ol 01 her you re not her kind thank heaven oh she s all right nan said tolerantly she did us one good turn anyway you know you al ways say you fell in love with me that night you came up to the apart ment because I 1 kept quiet the en tire evening my little he said fondly nan winced but you won t have much chance to see her after we re mar ned ried anyway when we come back from abroad we U 11 be at the country bouse house most of the tune time unless she comes out there nan smiled you needa t worry J B she wont won t come out there she said with quiet certainty certain tv |