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Show t , . . by elihor maxwell o O ARCADIA HOUSE PUBLICATIONS WNU SERVICE CHAPTER X Continued 10 "I shan't have lunch with Mr. Buchanan and talk things over," Mary thought bitterly as she slowly sipped the water. "There's no use in that. There's nothing to talk over! I've tried for years to be an author, and I've failed. My writing one story that was worthy of acceptance ac-ceptance was evidently just an accident. ac-cident. There's only one thing left to do now, and no matter how repugnant re-pugnant and cheap and vile, I'll simply have to do it. I'll marry Jerome Taylor. Perhaps Aunt Lin-nie Lin-nie was right all along! At least, it's the only way out to save my family." , She had an engagement for dinner din-ner and the theater with Jerome Taylor that evening. He would "make love" to her some time during dur-ing the evening. He always did. He would tell her how beautiful she was, and how he never tired looking look-ing at her; and he would ask her if she didn't care for him "just a little lit-tle bit." She had always evaded this question, or else answered, "Why, . of course, Jerry, you know I like you very much," in a manner so definitely platonic that it forthwith brought the topic to a close. She dressed with unusual care, wearing, as she had for that first dinner at Jerome's penthouse, her frock of silver and white; pinning, as she had also done on that night, his superb orchids high on her left shoulder. And again, as on the evening eve-ning of their first dinner together, she wore Lelia's ermine wrap. Casting Cast-ing one last glance at herself in the mirror before going to the living room to greet him, she smiled with bitter approval. "Yes," she told herself with acerbity, "I look just what I am a glorified gold-digger orchids, ermine cape, and all!" Jerome rose hastily from a chair as she entered the room. "Mary!" he exclaimed at sight of her. "My dear, you're more beautiful tonight than I've ever seen you!" And, lifting lift-ing her hand to his lips, he kissed it. She did not withdraw it immediately, immedi-ately, although the touch of his lips on her hand made her cringe. She must not be aloof, as she heretofore here-tofore had been with this man. She must pretend that she liked him. She must bring on a proposal tonight to-night tonight. He evidently noticed the change in her, for they were hardly settled in his car before he again sought her hand and held it. She did not attempt to draw it away, although she felt as if it were imprisoned impris-oned in the claw of a large eagle. "This is part of the business of getting engaged," she scathingly informed in-formed herself. "I'll have to grin and bear it. It's it's all in the day's work!" "You're different tonight, darling," dar-ling," Jerome was saying in that purring, tender voice she hated. "And, my dear, I've never seen you quite so beautiful. That coronet braid around your lovely little head makes you look like a queen! You do like me, don't you, dear? Somehow, Some-how, tonight, I feel ..." But Lorgan, the chauffeur, was pulling up at the curb in front of the Waldorf, and the uniformed doorman was opening the door of the car. Thankful that the drive was at an end, Mary withdrew her hand from Jerome's clasp, and slipped on a long white glove. "That's over for a while," she told herself, an imperceptible shudder going over ! her body. ! It was not over for long, how ever. Jerome Taylor, warmed by I her apparent encouragement, waited wait-ed only until after their entree had ! been served to begin again. His eyes, no longer quizzical, held a new glow of sanguinity; his voice had lowered to a new note of fervor. "Mary," he began as soon as the waiter had left their table, "I believe be-lieve you're beginning to like me just a bit after all this time. How about it, dear? You know I've been simply mad about you ever since the first day I saw you." "Have you really?" Mary countered. coun-tered. And then, desperately forcing forc-ing herself, "I'm I'm glad, Jerry." The man placed his fork on the side of his dinner plate. "Darling, how can you ask? You certainly have known it all along. You're the sweetest and the loveliest and the most beautiful thing I've ever seen. And, Mary, I want you always." al-ways." Eventually, she raised her eyes to the m.m, and forced a smile to her lips. Jerome, wrapped in his own thoughts, saw nothing amiss in her long silence: that cynical twist to her lips. "Darling." he was saying, say-ing, and now he had pushed aside his untouched food, apd lighted a cigarette. "I want to take care of you always give you the rare jewels jew-els that only you are suited to wear; the exquisite clothes you should have to accentuate your beauty. We'll travel everywhere, Mary see everything do everything there is i to be done! I'll 'always be proud of yea So very proud of you!" I Still unable to bring any words to her lips, she sat there; now lifting her goblet of water to her mouth; now sipping some water; now placing plac-ing the goblet back on the table. Jerry, unmindful of the people about them, reached across the table ta-ble and placed his hand over hers. "Darling, why not go down to Palm Beach with me tomorrow? My yacht's down there, you know, and . . Mary glanced sharply across at him. "Tomorrow? But, Jerry, how in the world could we get married in such a short time?" The man hastily relinquished her hand, and leaned back in his chair. The warm glow that had filled his narrow gray eyes disappeared. "My dear," he purred, "you seem to have misunderstood me." Mary stared at him with incredulous in-credulous eyes. "You weren't asking ask-ing me to marry you?" Jerome Taylor laughed. "What a provincial little thing you are! Why, everybody knows I'm not the marrying mar-rying sort. But, my dear, there are so many things I can do for you . . ." Mary felt for the cape which lay across the back of her chair, and with trembling fingers, pulled it over her shoulders. "You conceited conceit-ed old fool! I hate you! I've always hated you! I never want to see you again!" And grabbing her gloves and bag from the table, she rose from her chair. As unperturbed as if she had told him she'd just remembered a telephone tele-phone call she had to make, Taylor rose too, his sleek gray head inclining in-clining in a suave little -bow. "Don't make a scene, my dear," he said in a low voice, his hps fixed in a smile. "Remember, we're in a public pub-lic place. Besides, you're not exactly ex-actly suited to melodrama, you know." Mary flashed - him an enraged look; then, with steps which she tried desperately to keep steady, made her way blindly through the tables, and out of the room to the lobby. Eventually, she reached the door, and, in a voice that was still throaty with anger, asked the doorman to call for a taxi. She wondered if she had enough money in her bag raw h if 4 "My dear, you're more beautiful beauti-ful tonight than I've ever seen you!" to pay for the cab, but she was so dizzy with anger, she could not even bring herself to look. She was whirling up the Avenue away from Jerome Taylor closer, closer to Aunt Linnie's apartment and the safety and security which it betokened. Now, the cib was pulling up before Aunt Linnie's apartment house. Mary glanced at the meter; then emptied her purse into the driver's hand. She stepped to the curb, and ran across the canopied walk to the entrance en-trance door. Her head was down, and in her eagerness to get into the foyer, she did not see the man who was leaving it He caught her arm in an attempt to prevent a collision; col-lision; then, as they both came to an abrupt standstill, she looked up. "Why, Umberto!" she exclaimed. "I didn't see you!" "That is quite evident, little Mary!" he replied with a smile. "I had just dropped in to call on you, and but now was leaving with a heavy heart." "Mush! Mush! Mush!" thought Mary. "Why can't other men talk as sanely as Phillip Buchanan?" "You are back early, my beautiful!" beauti-ful!" Balianci continued, his hand still on her arm. "Is something wrong?" "No. Umberto, I wanted to come home." "But then, I may go up with you, and stay a while?" Mary frowned. "No, Umberto. No, no, no." Then, seeing the shadow that crossed his handsome dark face she said, "Oh, all right! Come on for a few moments. We'll listen ' to the radio." j Addie opened the door in answe r : to Mary's ring. "Why, Miss Mn ryl" she exclaimed. "I just told this gentleman you were out for the evening!" "I changed my plans, Addie," Mary returned and, slipping Lelia's wrap from her shoulders, handed it to the woman. "Addie, I wonder if you'll make us some black coffee. I have a headache." "Yes, ma'am, honey!" Addie replied. re-plied. "I'll have some for you in just a few minutes." Then, as Addie disappeared into the kitchen, Balianci came towards her. "Darling," he murmured in the honeyed tones that Mary loathed, "something has gone wrong with you! Something has hurt you! I can see it written on your lovly face. Tell Umberto, my sweet." Mary glanced up into his somber eyes eyes that were filled with compassion and pity. "It's nothing," noth-ing," she began in a voice that was husky with emotion. The ugly shock of Jerome Taylor's words had left her at last, but in its place there burned a blind rage against the man, and a fear for all things to come. "It's nothing," she repeated. And then, bursting into wild, uncontrollable un-controllable sobs, she cried, "Oh, Umberto, it's everything! It's everything! every-thing! Yes, something has hurt me terribly!" And, quite without knowing how it happened, she found herself in his arms, his lips softly pressing her cheek, her head against his shoulder. shoul-der. "Darling! Darling!" he was saying say-ing softly. "Cara mia, I love you!" And, for the moment, she felt safe, supremely secure in his arms. "Tell Umberto all about it, my sweet." She shook her head. "No! No! No! I can never tell anyonel" Taking a handkerchief from his pocket, he dried the tears on her face. "You've been crushed by something, my darling, and I could kill the beast who hurt you. Oh, Mary, my dear, I love you! I want to take care of you. I want you to be mine always, so that no one can ever hurt you again. Darling, will you marry me?" "Oh, no, Umberto, I can't marry you! I don't want to marry anybody!" any-body!" And then, with a badgering persistence, the thought, "But, I must marry somebody. I must do something!" again flooded her mind. "Ah, darling," Umberto replied, touching his lips lightly to her eyes, "you say that tonight because you are upset by this dreadful something; some-thing; but tomorrow, tomorrow, it will be different! Ah, feratasa, say you will consider it! Say I may leave you tonight with my heart warmed with the hope you will marry me soon.?' Mary withdrew from his embrace, moving towards the fireplace, her cold hand against her throbbing forehead. "I don't know, Umberto. Umber-to. Let's not talk about it tonight. Maybe . . ." Balianci followed her. "Maybe?" he repeated softly. "Maybe! Oh, cara mia, that means you will make me the happiest man on earth!" He attempted to take her in his arms again, but she pulled away, grateful to hear Addie approaching from the kitchen. She had hardly finished pouring the coffee when a key could be heard turning in the latch of the entrance en-trance door. An instant later, Le-lia Le-lia Ormsby came into the room. Her eyes widened when she saw Mary sitting there with Count Balianci. "Why, Mary!" she began. "What are you doing at home? I thought " Umberto jumped to his feet. "Mrs. Ormsby," he exclaimed, his dark eyes flashing, "congratulate me! I am the happiest man on earth! My lovely lady has promised to marry me!" A look of consternation flashed across Lelia's face. "Why, what do you mean?" "But just that!" Balianci re turned, with a grandiose wave ot his hand. "You will felicitate us, yes?" Lelia moved towards the lounge where Mary sat, her gaze riveted on her coffee cup. "Mary," she demanded, de-manded, "is this true? You're not really going to marry Count Balianci, Bali-anci, are you?" Mary could not look up, nor could she speak for a moment "I don't know Lelia," she finally replied in a remote voice. "Maybe I shall." Lelia continued to regard the girl with eyes that were cold with unbelief. un-belief. "Well," she said at last, and her voice was crisp, "I wish you both happiness. Perhaps Linnie l .a , j; mi.'jm 1 "I don't know, Umberto. Let's not talk about it tonight." Cotswell will be satisfied now. She's down in the lobby talking to the manager of the building. She'll be up here in a minute and you can break the joyous news to her. We were planning to go on to Club Torquay Tor-quay to join the Bascoms for a bit of roulette. No doubt, she'll want to make a party of it in celebration celebra-tion of this ah happy event." "But that is wonderful!" cried Umberto. "I shall buy champagne, and everybody will drink a toast to my bride-to-be!" Mary finally glanced up at Lelia. "You you will come, Lelia?" A pregnant silence followed a silence si-lence in which Lelia snapped open a cigarette box that lay on the table beside the lounge, removed a cigarette ciga-rette and lighted it "Yes," she finally said, "I'D go along." CHAPTER XI Aunt Linnie arrived on the scene a few minutes later. "Don't say anything!" Mary admonished Balianci Bali-anci and Lelia. "Please. Please!" And her voice was so importunate that they both nodded their acquiescence. acqui-escence. If Aunt Linnie felt any surprise at seeing Mary sitting in the living room with Balianci when she had supposed her to be at the theater with Jerome Taylor, her face did not betray her. "How nice to find you and Balianci here," she exclaimed. "Lelia and I are going to the Club Torquay to meet the Bascoms and play a bit of roulette. Will you join us?" "Thanks so much," Balianci replied. re-plied. "We'd love it" "I'll change in a jiffy," Lelia was saying, as if from a great distance. "Will you excuse me for five minutes?" min-utes?" Leila appeared in but a moment, looking slender and lovely in a frock of flame-colored chiffon, and carrying carry-ing over one arm her ermine wrap, and a black velvet coat with a white fox collar. (TO BE CONTINUED) |