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Show ;piM)mcr I m WHICH CAROL RECEIVES A MAD KISS IN THE DARK J FROM A BOLD MAN AND ENJOYS THE SENSATION i' Synopsis. The story concerns the household of Rev. Mr. Starr, a M thodist minister at Mount Murk, la., and the affairs of his fiTe 1 i veable daughters Prudence, ttie eldest ; Fairy, the next ; Carol and 1 Lirfc twins; and Connie, the "baby." Prudence marries and goes " qv Her plaee as "mother" In the home Is taken by Aunt Grace. ' fairy is engaged to wed. The twins and the "baby," just coming into tomanhood, have the usual boy-and-girl love affairs, and the usual ' amazing adventures of adolescence. CHAPTER VIII Continued. 9 no, I like to be out in the night ,,' i ffant to talk to you about be-a be-a preacher, you know. I think It if-te most wonderful thing in the Ui I certainly do." Her eyes were ,n his face now seriously. "I didn't :,t KCh, I was surprised, and I was v-Bied, too, professor, for I never '.-id do it in the world. Never I It iirs makes me feel cheap and exas-:iWed exas-:iWed when I see how much nieer Vvr folks are than L But I do think IMS wonderful. Really sometimes I iji thought you ought to be a preach- toause you're so nice. So many resellers aren't, and that's the kind seed." Xte professor put his other hand tier Carol's, which was restlessly fln-ng fln-ng the crease in his sleeve. He 'ii not speak. Her girlish, impulsive :rds touched him very deeply. I wouldn't want the girls to know they'd think it was so funny, but" ::e paused uncertainly, and looked -.ritioningly into his face. "Maybe :i won't understand what I mean, sometimes I'd like to be good my-i'. my-i'. Awfully good, I mean." She '-::! whimsiealy. "Wouldn't Connie if she heaid that? Now you it give me away, will you? But I :r;n it. I don't think of it very 'mi. but sometimes, why, Professor, Kstly, I wouldn't care if I were as . 4 as Prudence !" She paused drastically, dra-stically, and the professor pressed -i slender hand more closely In his. "Oh. I don't worry about it. I sup-;'?eone sup-;'?eone hasn't any business to expeet ; food complexion and just natural Illness, both at once, but " She i!J again. "Five thousand dollars," -e added dreamily. "Five thousand -'"lars ! What shall I call you now? fteser is not appropriate any more, i! Itr "Call me David, won't you, Carol? Of Dave." Carol gasped. "Oh, mtrcy! What to!d Prudence say?" She giggled Bwily. "Oh, mercy !" She was silent moment then. "I'll have to be eon-toted eon-toted with plain Mr. Duke, I suppose, rani you get a D. D. Duekle, D. D.," e added laughingly. But In an instant in-stant she was sober again. "I do love ,n-r lob. If I were a man TA be a lister myself. Wouldn't I he a !!?" He laughed, too, recovering his equality equa-lity as her customary buoyant tetitness returned to he. "Jon are," he said, and Carol angered: an-gered: "Thanks," very dryly. "We must go now," she added presently. And ?f turned at once, walking slowly toward the parsonage. "Can't you write to me a little often- Carol? I hate to be a bother, but uncle never writes letters, and I "' to know how my friends here are f'tfiog along, marriages, and deaths, Just plain gossip. Til like it very Kl if you can. I do enjoy a good "espondence with" "D Jou?" she asked sweetly. "How have changed ! When I was a 'tshman I remember you told me you 'ved nothing but business letters, anse you didn't want to take time 10 nte letters, and " "Did I?" For a second he seemed a ""e confused. "Well, I'm not crazy jM writing letters, as such. But Til glad to get yours that I know I'D Tf enjoy answering them." "iside the personage gate tbey stood foment among the rose bushes. jCe again she offered her hand, and took it gravely, looking with sober -fatness into her face, a little pale "je moonlight. He noted again the rj'-al little head with its grown-up Mthl f halr' and tne 8lender ngure lts grown-up length of skirt 'tid v he Put bis arms around her-, her-, klssed her warmly upon the ehild- inexpecting Hps. 4 swift red flooded her face, and re-,;.jmK re-,;.jmK as swiftly, left her pale. Her t' quivered a little, and she caught lands together. Then sturdily, and only slightly tremulous, she looked into his eyes and laughed. The professor profes-sor was in nowise deceived by her attempt at-tempt at light-heartedness, remembering remember-ing as he did the quick quivering lips beneath his, and the unconscious yielding yield-ing of the supple body in his arms. He condemned himself mentally tn no uncertain terms for having yielded to the temptation of her young loveliness. Carol still laughed, determined by her merriment to set the seal of insignificance insignifi-cance upon the act. "Come and walk a little farther, Carol," he said in a low voice. "I want to say something else." Then after a few minutes of silence, he began rather awkwardly, and David Arnold Duke was not usually awkward: "Carol, you'll think I'm a ead to say what I'm going to, after doing what I have just done, but I'll have to risk that. Tou shouldn't let men kiss you. It isn't right. You're too pretty and sweet and fine for It. I know yon don't allow It, commonly, but don't at all. I hate to thmk of anyone even touching a girl like you." Carol leaned forward, tilting back her head, and looking up at him roguishly, her face a-sparkle. He blushed more deeply. "Oh, I know It," he said. "I'm ashamed of myself. But I can't help what you think of me. I do think you shouldn't let them, and I hope you won't. They're sure to want to." "Tes," she said quietly, very grownup grown-up Indeed just then, "yes, they do. Aren't men funny? They always want to. Sometimes we hear old women say, 'Men are all alike.' I never believe be-lieve it. I hate old women who ay it. But are they all alike, professor?" "No," he said grimly, "they are not Bit I suppose any man would like to kiss a girl r.s sweet as you are. But men are not all alike. Don't you believe be-lieve it. Tou won't then, win yon?" ""Won't believe It? No." "I mean," he said, almost staramer-ing staramer-ing in his confusion, "I mean you won't let them touch you." Carol smiled teasingly, but In a moment mo-ment she spoke, and very quietly. T'fessor, 111 tell yon a blood-rtd se-ret se-ret If you swear up and down yonH never tell anybody. I've never told Lark well, one night, whsn I was a sophomore do yon remember Bud Garvin T" "Tes, the tall fellow with hlaek hair and eyes, wasn't he? In the freshman fresh-man zoology class." "Tes. Well, he took me home from a party. And Bud, well he rot his arm around me, and maybe you don't know it professor, but there's a big difference in girls, too. Now some girls are naturally good. Prudence Is, and so's Lark. But Fairy and I well, we've got a lot of the original Adam in us. Bud's rather nice and I let him oh, just a little, but it made me nervous and excited. But I liked It Prudence was away, and I hated to talk to Lark that night, so I sneaked in Fairy's room and asked if I mbt sleep with her. She said I could, and told me to turn on the light, it wouldn t disturb her. But I was so hot I didn t want any light, so I undressed as fast as I could and crept in. Somehow, from the way I snuggled up to Fairy, she caught on. I was out of b;eaUl; really I was ashamed of myself, but I wasn't just sure then whether Id ever let him put his arm around me again or not. But Fairy turned over, end began to talk. "She said that once, when she was fifteen, one of the boys at Exmlnster kissed her good night. And she didn't mind it a bit. But father was putting the horses in the barn, and he came out just in time to see it; It was a moonlight night. After the boys had gone, father hurried and took Fairy indoors for a little talk, Just the two of them alone. He said that in all the years he and my mother were married, every time he kissed her he remembered remem-bered that no man but he had ever touched her lips, and it made him happy. hap-py. He said he was always sort of thanking God inside, whenever h held hor fn his arms. He suld nothing else In the world made a man so proud, and glnd and grateful, as to know his wife was all his own, and that even her lips had been reserved for lihn like a sacred sa-cred treasure that no one else could share. He said it would take the meanest man on earth, and father thinks there aren't many us meun as that, to go back on u woman like that. Fairy said she burst out crying because be-cause her husband wouldn't ever be able to feci that way when he kissed her. But father said since she was so young and innocent, and it being the first time, it wouldn't really count. Fairy swore off that minute never again I Of course, when I knew how father felt about mother, I wanted my husband to have as much pleasure in me as father did in her, and Fairy and I made a solemn resolve that we would never, even 'hold hands,' and that's very simple, until we got crazy enough about a man to think we'd like to marry him if we got a chance. And I never have since then, not once." "Carol." he said in a low voice, "I wish I had known it. I wouldn't have kissed you for anything. God knows I wouldn't. I I think I am man enough not to have done it anyhow if I had only thought a minute, but God knows I wouldn't have done it if I had known about this. Tou don't know how con temptible I feel. "Oh, that's all right," she said comfortingly, com-fortingly, her eyes glowing. "That's all right. We just meant beaux, you know. We didn't include uncles, and fathers, and old schoolteachers, and things like that. You don't count. That Isn't breaking my pledge." The professor smiled, but he remembered remem-bered the quivering lips, and the relaxing re-laxing of the lithe body, and the forced laughter, and was not deceived. "Tou're such a strange girl, Carol. Tou're so honest, usually, so kind-hearted, kind-hearted, so generous. But you always seem trying to make yourself look bad, not physically, that isn't what I mean." Carol smiled, and her loving fingers caressed ca-ressed her soft cheek. "But you try to make folks think you are vain and selfish, when you are not. Why do you do it? Everyone knows what you really are. All over Mount Mark they say you are the best little kid in town." . "They do !" she said indignantly. "Well, they'd better not. Here I've spent years building np my reputation to suit myself, and then they go and shatter it like that. They'd better leave me alone." "But what's the object?" "Why, now, p'fessor," she said, carefully care-fully choosing her words, "you know, It's a pretty hard job living up to a good ' reputation. Look at Prudence and Fairy and Lark. Everyone Just naturally expects them to be angelically angeli-cally and dishearteningly good. And if they aren't, folks talk. But take me now. No one expects anything of me, and if once In a while I do happen to turn out all right by accident, it's a sort of Joyful surprise to the whole community. It's lots more fun surprising sur-prising folks by being better than they expect, than shocking them by turning out worse than they think you will." "But it doesn't do you any good," he assured her. "You can't fool them. Mount Mark knows its Carol." "Tou're not going?" she said, as he released her hand and straightened the collar of his coat. "Tes, your father will chase me off If I don't go now. How about the letters, let-ters, Carol? Think you can manage a little oftener?" "I'd love to. It's so Inspiring to get a letter from a flve-thousand-dollars-a-year scientist; I mean, a was-once. Do my Utters sound all right? I don't want to get too chummy, you know." "Get as chummy as you can," he urged her. "I enjoy it." "I'll have to be more dignified If you're going to MeCormick. Presbyterian Presbyte-rian ! The Presbyterians are very dignified. dig-nified. I'll have to be formal from this on. Dear sir: Respectfully yours. Is that proper?" He took her hands In his. "Goodby, little pal. Thank you for coming out, and for telling me the things you have. Tou have done me good. Tou are a breath of fresh, sweet air." She moved her fingers slightly In his hand, and he looked down at them. Then he lifted them and looked again, admiring the slender fingers and the pink nails. "Don't look," she entreated. "They're teaching me things. I can't help it. This spot on my thumb is fried egg, here are three doughnuts on my arm see them? And here's a regular pancake." pan-cake." She pointed out the pancake in her palm, sorrowfully. "Teaching you things, are they?" "Tes, I have to darn. Look at the tips of my fingers, that's where the needle rusted off on me. Here's where I cut a slice of bread out of my thumb I Isn't life serious?" "Tes, very serious." He looked thoughtfully down at her hands again as they lay curled up in his own. "Very, very serious." "Goodby." "Goodby." He held her hand a mo-mont mo-mont longer, and then turned suddenly away. She watched until he was out of sight, and then slipped upstairs, undressed un-dressed in the dark and crept between the covers. Lark apparently was sound asleep. Carol giggled softly to herself a few times, and Lark opened one eye, asking, "What's amatter?" "Oh, such a good joke on p'fessor," whispered Carol, squeezing her twin with rapture. "He doesn't know It yet, but he'll be so disgusted with himself when he finds it out." "What in the world is it?" Lark was more coherent now. "I can't tell you, but you'll certainly scream if you ever do know it." "You can't tell me?" Lark was wide awake, und quite aghast. "No, I truly can't." Lark drew away from the encircling arm with as much dignity as could be expressed in the dark and in bed, and sent out a series of deep breaths, as if to Indicate that snores were close at hand. Carol laughed to herself for a while, until Lark really slept, then she buried her head in the pillow and her throat swelled with sobs that were heavy but soundless. The next morning was Lark's turn for making the bed. And when she shook up Carol's pillow she found it very damp. "Why, the little goose," she said to herself, smiling, "she laughed until she cried, all by herself. And then she turned the pillow over, thinking I wouldn't see it. The little goose! And what on earth was she laughing at?" CHAPTER IX. Jerry Junior. For some time the twins ignored the atmosphere of solemn mystery which pervaded their once so cheerful home. But when it finally reached the limit of their endurance they marched in upon their aunt and Fairy with an admirable ad-mirable admixture of dignity and indignation indig-nation in their attitude. "Who's haunted?" inquired Carol abruptly. ab-ruptly. "Where's the criminal?" demanded Lark. "Tes, little twins, talk English and maybe you'll learn something." "Then, in common vernacular, though it is really beneath us, what's up?" Fairy turned innocently inquiring eyes toward the celling. "What, indeed?" in-deed?" "Oh, don't try to be dramatic, Fairy," counseled Lark. "Tou're too fat for a star-Starr." The twins beamed at each other approvingly ap-provingly at this, and Fairy smiled. But Cnrol returned promptly to the charge. "Are Jerry and Prudence having hav-ing domestic difficulties? There's something some-thing going on, and we want to know. Father looks like a fallen Samson, and " "A fallen Samson, Carol! Mercy! where did you get it?" . "Yes, kind of sheepish, and ashamed, and yet hopeful of returning strength. Prudence writes every day, and you hide the letters. And Aunt Grace sneaks around like a convict with her hand under her apron. And you look as heavy-laden as if you were carrying Connie's conscience around with yon." Aunt Grace raised her eyebrows. Fairy hesitated, nodded, smiled. Slowly Slow-ly then Aunt ' Grace drew one hand from beneath her apron and showed to the eagerly watching twins a tiny, hand-embroidered dress. They stared at it, fascinated, half frightened, and then looked into the serious faces of their aunt and sister. "I I don't believe it," whispered Carol. "She's not old enough." Aunt Grace smiled. 1 "She's older than mother was," said Fairy. Lark took the little dress and examined exam-ined it critically. "The neck's too small," she announced critically. "Nothing could wear that." "We're using this for a pattetrn," said Fairy, lifting a yellowed, mtich-worn mtich-worn garment from the sewing basket "I wore this, and so did you and. so did Connie my lovely child." Carol rubbed her hand about her throat in a puzzled way. "I can't asem to realize that we ever grew out of that," she said slowly. "Is Prudence all right?" ; "Tes, just fine." The twins looked at each other hash-fully. hash-fully. Then, "I'll bet there'll b no living with Jerry after this," said Lrk. "Oh, papa," lisped Carol, in a Iilgh-pitched Iilgh-pitched voice supposed to represent the tone of a little child. They both giggled, and blinked hard to cirowd back the tears that wouldn't stay choked down. Prudence! And that! "And see here, twins, Prudence has a crazy notion that she wants to come home for it. She says she'll be scared in a hospital, and Jerry's willing to. come here with her. What do you think about it?" The twins looked doubtful. "Th?y say it ought to be done in a hospital," announced Carol gravely. "Jerrj covild afford it." The Starr family Is setting much store by Jerry Junior, ko be, but Mother Nature doesn't tell all her secrets she enjoys a joke on human 1 beings now and then. (TO BE CONTINUED.) |