Show fa EAL E ao ll 11 DV bj B y HENRY ketchell J R U v 1 copyright 1916 bobbs merrin co RODNEY ALD ALDRIGH RICH shad NEVER REALLY THOUGHT MUCH OF GETTING MARRIED UNTIL H HIS SISTER PUT THE I 1 BUG IN HIS EAR THEN rhen HE THOUGHT FIRST OF PRETTY ROE ROSE STANTON SYNOPSIS rose stanton student student at A the university of I 1 Is s aff il a afre street et 6 car r in f n the after an n argument with the I 1 tor for she Is accosted by it a nice nice young man who offers tofile to file a complaint with the company and wha escorts her to another car line an hour later athla man rodney aldrich appeared soaked with rain at atthe the honio of his very wealthy married sister mrs martin whitney to attend a bl y dinner in lits bla honor mrs whitney had bad schemed to make e b a L marriage match between ean him and hermeone Herm lone loue woodruff a divorcee bu but the plan falls at the dinner ar CHAPTER 0 11 continued she came up to him mid add at arms length touched him with cautious fingertips finger tips and do please theresa dear dear boy boj 11 sho she pleaded hur hurry as i fast as yuit you can aan and then C ome come dowland down dow nand and be amblee as nicy as you can she hesitated especially to hermeone Herm lone woodruff she thinks youre a wonder and I 1 an dont want vinith her er to bo be disappointed the widdy he be asked allied sure ill be e nice boher to her i she looked after him rather dubiously ashe as he disappeared in the direction of her husbands bathroom TI there biere was a sort of hilarious content contentment meni about him blin which filled her with misgivings things tv ings well weli they were justified I 1 I 1 Am according to violet ac coun couff given ven confidentially in the draw ing room afterward was really iier her in tones fault she just let rodney alone would keep talking about crimes aimes and lombroso and psychiatric laboratories labora ill bet shed got hold of a paper of his bils somewhere and read it anyway flyway at lt last she said 1 I believe doctor randolph i would agree with filth me me 1 he wa malhi talking ng to uie me then but maybe that why she did it well and rodney straightened up and sald said Is that randolph the alienist you see he caught bis name when tiley they wera in cd d and d how it if it started arted therin Herm hermeone I 1 tone lone was gained game admit that she listened and kept looking interested qed and every now and them then said something sometimes take the trouble to smile and say yes indeed I 1 T politely you know but other times limes they pay any attention at all just roll along over her and smash her flat like his name juggernaut ger 11 you dont need to tell me that said frederica all I 1 know was was how it started I 1 sit there and ad watch for a mortal hour not able to do a thing I 1 tried to signal to martin mal but ot of course he w aint appo me and he did allbe could really violet assured her 1 J I told him to go to therecie there the rescue cue and he did bravely mut but what with hermeone Herm lone being so about I 1 getting frozen out and martin himself being so interested in what they were shouting at each other because it was frightfully interesting you know it if you dont have to pretend you understood it if why there much he could do in the light of this disaster she was rather glad themen the men lingered d in the dining ro room 0 in as long as they did glad that hermeone Herm lone had ordered her aarfor car for ten and took the odd girl with her hei she made no effort to resist the departure of the others with reasonable promptitude in their train when after the front froni door had closed for the last time martin released a i long yawn she told him to run along to ved bed she wanted to talk to rodney who was to spend the night while his own bl clothes othes were drying out in the laundry good night old chap I 1 said martin in accents of lively comallie cOmal commiseration lse art 0 im glad rin im not in tor for what you are I 1 rodney found a pipe sat at down astride a spindling little chair settled his da elbows comfortably on th the eback back ot of it and then ihen asked his elsier whit what martin had what was be la in for frederica curled up in a Orn comer orlof of the sofa looked at him arnat at first with a wry pucker between her eyebrows then with i a ismile and finally answered his quest question loil nothing she said 1 I paean I 1 was going goin ato to scold you but im not I 1 then oh ob I 1 was furious with you ou tan an hour ago she went oil on id i made ouch nuch a really beautiful plan fa for r you and then I 1 sat eat and watched you in that thoroughgoing way of yours ours kicking it all to bits l the plan wa was in of course to 6 marry you off arjo to wood ruff he turned this over la in his 98 dellb deliberate mf way evily during the process of blowing two or three smoke rings began grad gradually bally to gri grin n and sald said at lasov last that mt was some plan little sister how bowa do you think of bf things like that yon yau ought ough tto to write jowa romances for the 1 I dont know she objected it if creaso nobleness na bleness counted for anything in things like that it wits IL a pretty pid plan it would d hate bare to be some j body like hermeone Herm lone you nou c cant ant get on at nil all with young girls 11 1 I dont know said rodney bodney whether mrs woodruff knows what she wants or not but I 1 do shei she wants a dunfor run for germoney her money and sh shell ell want a nice tame trick husband to manage things forler for her and be johnny on the nt spot whenever she wants him and it the mila happened to be me I 1 frederica str stretched her slim arms outward thoughtful faced she made no comment unless there was one in the deliberate way in which she turned lier her rings one at ai a time so that the afie brilliant masses of gems were inside and an dithen then clenched her hands ove over r them he had got up and w was ranging comfortably up and down the room 1 I know 1 look more or less like a nut to the people dhove always known us but I 1 give you my word freddy that most of them look like nuts to me why a man should load himself up with three houses and a yacht a stable of motorcars and heavens knows what besides Is a thing I 1 cant figure out on any basis badts except of defective e intelligence I 1 suppose equally puzzled about me when I 1 refuse a profitable piece of law work offered me because I 1 dont consider it interesting all the same I 1 get what I 1 want and rm im pretty dubious P sometimes betimes whether the they do I 1 want space domfort comfortable able elbow room so that if I 1 happen to get gei an idea be tile the tall fall I 1 can swing it round my head without knocking over the lamp its a luxury though rod hod that kind of spaciousness and you arent very rich if you married a girl without anything 11 I 1 he broke in on her with that big laugh of his youve kep your sense of humor pretty well sis considering youve been married all these years to a man as rich ns as martin but dont spring remarks like that or ill think youve lost t it it if a man cant keep an open space around him even after lies married on an income outside of what be earns often of ten or twelve thousand dollars a year the trouble with his bis income its with the content of his own skull k she gave a little sf shiver ilver and snuggled closer int into 0 a big down pillow apu will marry somebody though wont you roddy I 1 try not to nag at you and I 1 wont make any more V T arre thc plan was f course to marry you off to hermeone Herm Horm lone woodrum woodruff silly billy plans but I 1 cant beant help worrying about yoi you living alone in n that awful big old house anybody but you would die of despondency oh he sald said what I 1 meant to talk to you about I 1 I 1 sold it today fifty thousand dollars immediate possession man wants to belld a printing establishment there you come down sometime next week meek and pick out ont aalthe all the things you and harried would ilk and ru auction off the rest she shivered kapla ana on to her heir I 1 disgust found thi that at her eyes were blurring up with tears she was a little bit slack and edgy today a anyhow n chow what ho had bad just referred to in A a dozen brisk words was the final disappearance of the home they had all grown up in their father one of Chi cagos great men during the wenty twenty odd years from the fire to them the fair llad had built it when the neighborhood included nearly all the ot other herbig big men of that robust period and had always been proud of it of course for years sears the neighborhood had been impo impossible 8 sible herb her mother had clung to io it after af ter her husbands death but rodney had simply stayed on since lar her death waiting for an all offer for it that suited him ills his curt announcement that the long looked for change had come brought up quick tears slie she squeezed them away with her palms Is that she asked why youve been lo looking oldrig so BO sort of gay all the evening as if you were licking the last iasi of the canaras can arys feat feathers bers oft your whisk whiskers birs perhaps so 0 o he said its been a good day take it all round 1 she got up from th the e couch shook herself down into her clothes a little and came over to him all right since alilee its been a good day lets go to bed aed she put her hands upon his shoulders youre rather dreadful S she he said but yo youre urea a dear you dont bite my head off when I 1 urge yosu to get married though I 1 know you want to but you will some day I 1 dont mean bite my head off wont you rod I 1 when I 1 see any prospect of being as lucky as martin find a girl who wont mind when I 1 turn up for dinner looking like ille a drowned tramp or klek kick her plans to bits after ashes tipp tipped edme me oft off as to what she wants me to do frederica took her hands off stepped back and looked at him there was waa an ironical sort of smile on her lips youre such an innocent roddy dear dont think the girl you marry will ever treat you like that but look herel here I 1 he exclaimed how in thunder am I 1 going to k know now about the girl I 1 get engaged to before its too late you wont she said you haven t a chance in the world hm I 1 he grunted obviously struck with this idea youre giving the prospect of marriage new attractions youre making the thing out an adventure she nodded rather soberly oh im not afraid for you she said men like adventures you more than most but women dont they like to dream about them but they want to turn over to the last chapter and see how bow its going to end its the girl im worried about ou oh come along I 1 were talking nonsense ill gorup with ith you ind and see that giving you pajamas and a toothbrush tooth brush she had accomplished this purpose kissed alsed him goodnight good night and turned to leave the room when her eye fell u upon pon a heap of damp warped pasteboard bound notebooks which she jered bared having observed in his side pockets when he first came in she went over and picked them up peered at the paper label that thai had half peeled off the topmost cover and read what was written on it who she asked with considerable emphasis is rosalind stanton oh sald rodney very casually behind the worst imitation of a yawn she had ever seen oh she got put off the carthen car when I 1 did that sounds rather exciting said frederica behind an imitation yawn of her own but a better one going to tell me about abou tit it nothing much to tell said rodney there was a row about a fare as I 1 said and then we both got put off so 0 naturally I 1 walked with her over to the elevated and then I 1 forgot t to 0 give her her notebooks and came away avay with them what sort of looking girl asked frederica Is she pretty why chyl I 1 dont know said rodney judicially really you know I 1 hardly cotla a fair look ather at her frederica made a funny sounding laugh and wished him an abrupt good night she wits was a great old girl frederica pretty wise e about lots of things but rodney was inclined to think she was mistaken in saying women like adventures youre a a liar you yon know remarked his as conscience nee telling frederica you a good look at her and how about those notebooks about forget ting ing 6 to give them thern to herl her I 1 CHAPTER ill I 1 the second encounter portia stanton was late tor for lunch so after stripping off her jacket and gloves rolling ap her yell veil and scowl ing ng ct at herself in an oblong mahogany framed mirror in thelwall the hall liall she walked nto into the room V with herbat her hat on seeing her mother sitting at the lunch table she asked wheres Wh erea rosel kosel shell be down I 1 think ler her wd said wes does bour your hot hat mean youre going back to the shop this afternoon portia nodded pulled back her chair abruptly and sat down 1 I t thought hought that on saturday her mother began oil oh 1 I know said portia but that girl ive got much good have known them for mother and daughter anywhere and have had trouble finding any point of resemblance in either ot of them to tile the amazonian Amazon lan young thing who had so nearly thrown a streetcar street car conductor t or into the street the night before the mothers hair was very soft and white and the care with which it was arranged indicated a certain harmless harm leso allty vanity in it there was something a little conscious too about her ter dress if you took tt it in connect connection lon with it a certain resolute amiability about her smile you would be entirely I 1 prepared to hear her tell portia that site avas as to talk on modern tendencies before tile the club this afternoon A very real person nevertheless you doubt that the marks of passionately held beliefs and eagerly given sacrifices were etched with undeniable den table authenticity in her face once you got beyond a catalogue of features portia presented rather a striking contrast to this her hair was done with a severity that was fairly hostile her clothes were brusquely worn her smile if not ill matured d it that was distinctly tr ironic otile A very competent good looking young woman just now drooping a little over the cold lunch so rose bose come down this morning at all nothing particular tile matter with her is there asked portia there was enough real concern in her voice to save the question from rom sounding satirical but her mothers manner was a little apologetic when slie she answered it no I 1 think not she said butt but she was in such a state when she came home last night literally wet through to the skin sidn and blue still cold so I 1 thought it do any harm 11 of course not said portia rose dose is all right she wont spoil badly rm im a little bit worried about the loss of the poor childs notebooks said gald her mother 1 I dont believe rose hose is worrying her head bead off about them said portia the flush in her mothers cheeks deepened a little but it was vas nolo no longer 9 apologetic 1 I dont think youre quite fair to rose about her studies she said it if she seem always to appreciate her privilege in getting ii college education as seriously its as she should you should remember member rp her ter youth ashes only twenty im sorry mother portia interrupted contritely 1 I mean any harm anyway she pay the mans name was rodney aldrich 1 I think so her mother agreed something like that its rather funny said portia its IN hardly likely to have been the real rodney aldrich yet les its not a common om mon name tile the real rodney aldrich 7 questioned her mother but without waiting for her daughters elucidation of the phrase she added oh theres rose hose I 1 the girl came up behind portia and enveloped her in a big lazy hug back to work another saturday afternoon angel she asked arent you ever going to stop and have any fun then she slumped plumped into a chair heaved 9 yawning sigh and rubbed her eyes tired dear asked her mother she said it under her breath in |