Show A GUEST IN ERROR by SOLLY a associated newspapers service ILLY JENKINS was sure M MILLY she had given mrs bo boyd yd just what she had asked for but within an hour of having bought the figured crepe mrs boyd was back with a complaint she had asked for five yards milly had cut off four four yards do it was a bad mess for milly mrs boyd had a charge account at watermans Water mans she was a valued customer she got her five yards and milly got a calling down she had not merited she was nearly exhausted and discouraged cou raged as one can be who is healthy and young and still hopeful that life has something more in store for one than the many complications one has thus far encountered milly never knew how she would find things when she got home anything might have happened in her absence for instance she had come home not so long ago and found that her mother had just married mr swan abw when she opened the door and was not greeted by the familiar odor of boiling potatoes and frying meat she knew there going to be any dinner loud voices came from the dining room mother and stepfather were quarreling again they done anything but quarrel since they got married for while mr swan had been an amiable boarder he was a very poor sort of husband and he had made it so unpleasant for the other boarders that they had all gone elsewhere billys mother stout red faced and worried came to meet milly lend me some money mrs swan demanded holding out her hand ed got any job yet and the meter man says going to shut off the lights if I 1 dont pay up I 1 have a cent to buy meat with AU all this was an old story to milly since mr swans entrance into the household she took a neatly folded bill from her purse her shoe money and her soles were almost through her mother snatched the money she was unfair to her daughter but it seemed to her milly had a very easy time of it all she did was to work a few hours each day in a beautiful store and earn a nice salary milly was mounting the steep stairs when the telephone bell rang the e anone telephone was on the wall of the hau hall easily accessible to every bo body in the th house axce except the lady in the kitchen milly went back to anaw answer er the call miss jenkins it was a mans voice well bred with the resonance of confident youth in its deep tones 1 I am speaking peaking for mrs s austin boyd she wants you to dine with us tonight at seven please dont t W say no V Y yes I 1 will th thank you stammered milly that was all she stood stunned staring into the receiver mrs boyd had asked her to din nerl after what had happened that morningto mornin gt it was unbelievable and yet it was true and she had promised to got goa suddenly a wave of joy poured ove over her she stopped just long enough to shout into the dining room im asked aske dout out to dinnell before she dashed upstairs fatigue had vanished in 1 its stead was radiant expects ton tion there was plenty of hot water for once she emerged from her bath drenched and shining like a rain washed rose her dress was just a little russet crepe picked up at a bargain sale but clothes dont matter much when one has a graceful body gleaming hair and the color of excitement in ones cheeks when milly rang mrs boyds bell she was too happy to tremble very much the same young man who had telephoned to her opened the acor for her she had never seen him before but he impressed her as looking very healthy and vigorous with his tanned skin sunburned blond hair a and d clear gray eyes he was the kind of man she get a chance to meet often and liked lawrence boyd son of mrs austin boyd saw a tall girl with lustrous un bobbed hair and dark eyes that met his with sett self unconscious directness I come into the library mother down yet he said the library was a room of ones dreams milly pounced upon a book of travel dad knew the man that wrote this she said eagerly ive been reading criticisms about it in the papers its a beautiful book it mr cummings always illustrates his travel books with pictures he takes himself he wanted dad to go with him to yucatan that was a great opportunity I 1 think 1 I thought so too but dad died milly turned abruptly from the book remembering her manners just as mrs boyd halfway half way down the stairs paused to see what was going on in tire the library meanwhile lawrence was all taken up with milly he voted her a rare find she had sense she had an air air and her dark eyes with their long fringes sort of thrilled him milly loved her dinner she was honestly hungry and there was lots of food all of it delicious some of it by her before everything went smoothly until the maid told mrs boyd that miss hankins wanted her on the telephone mrs boyd came back looking flushed and grim but while she was gone lawrence had discovered that milly knew a great deal about lacrosse her father had played lacrosse splendidly milly have to walk back home lawrence pulled out the car and took her and when she got there he placed the travel book written by her fathers friend in her slender hands he had kept the book out of sight until the right moment when he got home his mother was waiting for him A salesgirl from watermans Waterman Water mans sl she said icily instead of miss hankins A very poor kind of joke my son no joke at all it if the salesgirl finds out the mistake lawrence returned 1 I knew I 1 was in dutch the minute I 1 saw the expression on your face but you were talking about both girls at lunch id never seen either of them and I 1 was thinking of something else besides look at this he took a slip of paper from the desk and gave it to her theres the telephone number you wrote down for me the devil himself tell your as from your as 1 I have a rich father to educate me the why way you did she said 1 I was working in a store by the tha time I 1 was 15 A girl like milly ought to appeal to you then Mill Mi llyl yi mrs boyd started but lawrence was lighting a cigarette with a thoughtful look on his face deep in the night milly jumped into wakefulness she began putting two and two together and they made four all right there had been some mistake shed had no business to eat mrs boyds dinner mrs boyd wanted her mrs boyd the kind to make amends for a hasty word by inviting the girl she had accused of making a mistake to dinner mrs boyds kind never made mistakes they were rich and splendid they had always had everything they wanted besides there was that telephone call from miss hankins milly knew miss hankins she was handsome and moneyed young enough for lawrence boyd miss hankins often bought silks at milays counter she was just the kind of girl mrs boyd would pick out for a daughter in law the following night when milly went home from work she was met by the good news that mr swan had got a j job ob and miss avery is coming back to board with me her mother said at the table miny milly drooped she was too tired to eat pork chop and fried potato she help thinking if dad had lived all might have been different he would have pulled mother and milly out some how the telephone go answer it milly mrs swan dishing stewed tomato commanded billys voice was listless as she spoke into the receiver miss jenkins milly it was a voice she had never expected to hear again this is lawrence bo boyd y d speaking mother and I 1 are coming round to your house in half an hour can we get you to go for a ride with us billys heart skipped several beats IIII III 1111 II I I guess so she managed to reply |