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Show Mm BORROWED HUSBANDS ! IB MILDRED K. BARBOUR j In MILDRED K. BARBOUR. ( n I'M ( )Mlf. HERE TO B LiyBs" (Copyright. 1921, By The Wheeler Syndicate. Inc.? After the contretemps in the drawing draw-ing room, Nancy tied to her Bitting room before she could far forget herself as to give the Harding of,'-, of,'-, pring the shaking he deserved. ( Her entrance startled the maid, who sras generously applying Nancy's 1 bm osmetics to her face. Stepping bade r from Nancy's tripled mirrors, she ewed the effei t critically, ?'Oh, Madam, I did not know you were in," gasped the girl, when she perceived Nancy's reflection over her SKfifl -boulder. UH "So I perceived.'" sid Nancy Rtim- SH y with compressed lips. "Draw my SH l ath, please, and lay out a black tulle SH i niier gown that you'll find in tin' 2H ardrobe trunli Tom may go then. H With apologetic haste, the girl ret CH inout to do as she was hid. KH Nancy took off her hat wearily. SH tossed it on the couch, and ran her pfH lingers through her hair, lifting a CH from her forehead with a siph of rc- She unhooked her gown and sllp-pvl sllp-pvl out of it. She refused to look at EH n closer to sc the wreck of t.o Im- Q ported creation which the Harding oungster had so thoroughly ruined ' gjB She tOSied I' toward the maid, who' CiH was kneeling before the trunk. P-'Uf 'You can have that, Suzanne, r h . Marie, or whatever your nnmo is. Tea 2H tallis may come out and you can re- IJB tir the lace 11 you ar a d-ft needh --oman. I could never wear it again PVl v ithout losing my temper." rfH "Thank you. Madam," murmured E3H the mai'l, tactfully refraining from fr-H mment. I.H had her bath, wrapped her- EBBj sell in a negligee, and lay down .mi HA Hie couch Semi ram Is came and BflJ rubbed gently against her hand, pur- : EBS i.ng contentedly She stroked the MHJ rat mechanically, too weary to If f S ,,t up on jhe couch, too weary C".-:: M , thin H seemed only a moment later that she sat up with a start. The piano was being played in th drawing room. Even In hor halt-,-orritose state she recognized Vcgf.y Lewis' dashing rendition of "Bright Eyes." A mellow baritone voice hegan to sing: "Bright eyes, I know you so well, I Bright eyes, what secrets you tell! ' The room was In darkness, proving I to Nancy that she must have slept i for some time Through the window she could BCe the moon rising over the Pallaadj a She sprang up hastily, flasher! on the lights ami rang for the maid. Sho glanced at her wrist-watt h and discovered to her dismay that the hands pointed to a quarter to eight. She did her hair swiftly and was into her gown and ready to be hooked When the girl arrived. "Am I very late ?" "Dinner has been waiting for three-quarters three-quarters of an hour, Madam. Mr. Harding likes to dine at sevt n Nancy promptly abandoned h' r haste, finding wicked enjoyment 111 the thought of keeping "Papa" Harding Hard-ing waiting. She smiled complacently at her reflection re-flection In the mirror, rcmemberim; that she h;:d also been responsible 'or awaking the lord of the manor that morning before his appointed time. "If 1 cajl keep up this system of subtle torture, his .irtlstlc tempera- j ment may force him to leave n y house," she thought Her toilet completed. Bhc went in-1 to the drawing room, expecting t face a patiently? W&Ifing family. Bhe found it occupied only by Peg-' Lewis and her former husband Tho latter was staring moodily oit of the window, his hands thrust in his pockets Peggy was still playing dreamily, her head flung back and , 13 1 g half closed. ' Hello. Nancy." Pcgcy greeted hor "Come hear the news. I've le 1 rj-evc Lewis and I'm coming hero f" live " . |