The Leon reporter. (Leon, Iowa) 1887-1930, 1900-10-11
one - H| Fascinating
vSS % Romance
Way x = K. 1s,....

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| mo, dearest God forbid that
should wish to deprecate the girl who
loved me so we'll; but she was not
your equal. She was simply a pure
sweet, loving woman; but she would
not have understood. She had pretty
ways of making house homelike and
charming; but she had but very little
everything. Joyce, you know all about
our brief married life now. / don't
believe that you'll don't believe that
you would be jealous of the dead wo-
man. Now tell me straight out If you
Will make me happy. l don't think
you know or can guess what you are
to me. How my whole life and soul
are bound up in you. how empty my
4 life would be without you. think il
you understood that you would forget
all about the story have told you,
and give yourself to me, to hold and
to keep as the dearest thing in the
world''
The tears were standing in his eyes,
he was so much in earnest 1t seemed
to him as If the making or the mar
ring of his life was in this slender
girls hands; and she was moved, too.
.of course mind, dearest" she said.
If did not mind so much 1 should
not love you SO much. Just think
now would you like it if some other
man had had my first kiss, my first
words of love!'
Il should not like it at all; should
hate it, Joyce" he said, frankly. Il
knew you would. l should have asked
you to marry me year ago if l had
not had this past behind me. | have
loved you well enough all the time.
1t is only now that l have been pre-
sumptuous enough to think that you
love me little that l have spoken;
and If you do truly love me, Joyce,
you will only be sorry for all that
have suffered in the past
Joyce was not an ungenerous girl.
and though there was certain sting
in the fact that Alan had suffered
through another woman, yet she could
feel it in her heart to pity the girl
who had only been Alan's wife for
four months, and who had died in SO
tragic manner. She rose. "Shall we
go in to the others, Alan?" she said,
softly.
But he caught her hand. "Not be-
fore have had my answer, Joyce.
oh, no! not before I have had nv an
swer! Don't be cruel, darling! Put
me out of paint"
Dearest" she said, .syou know
your answer. You know that l love
you, and that | would never deny nv
love. This unhappy story of yours
has been surprise to me, and little
shock; but it does not really make any
difference, does it, when two people
love each other?"
Joyce" he cried-there was the
purest joy in his tone-"Joyce, you
have made me so happy that 1 have
no words to express my happiness.
And you will not think of this again /?
1t will not be bar between us? 1t
only comes to me now and again.
when have thought that you would
not like it. And now, Joyce, you are
cheating me of my kiss of betrothal.
Come behind this rock"
/ And as Joyce was just a sweet, low
ing girl, who had promised herself to
the man she loved, she made no de-
MUIR but gave him his kiss; and they
both walked up to the house, trying
to forget the thing that had been dis
cussed between them. And, as a mat
j ter Of fact, they did forget it. They
were so happy in each other, and so
happy in the prospect of the new life
before them, that they actually did
forget. Alan told his story to Joyce's
father as he had told it to Joyce, and
after that he felt he had done all that
would be asked of him. He revelled
in the thought of Joyce's love, and
poor Veronica might never have ex-
listed for him at all. There was moth
/ ing but talk of preparations for the
wedding and settlements, nothing but
congratulations and envyings of his
luck, nothing in all this to remind him
of the simple preparations for the
civil marriage that had been the only
one possible in Rio. Joyce had begged
for six months engagement, Alan
had insisted on three; and as there
was really nothing to wait for he had
his way.
! He had known Joyce for more than
three years, and had met her at the
house of mutual friend, had been
attracted to her from the first;. SO that
it seemed as if they had actually been
engaged much longer than was the
case. He was still in the firm of
Dempster, only now he was partner
instead of an employee. He had been
called to the bar, but did not practice
regularly, seeing that he did not have
much time. The three months passed
very quickly; there was so much to
do, so much to settle. 1t was very
happy time, but one evening Alan got
rather nasty shock. He had been
seeing Joyce, and they had spent the
usual happy time together. He was
Immersed in thoughts and dreams of
her, and was not looking very much
where he was going. Turning cor
ner sharply he ran up against a man
who seemed little unsteady in his
gait.
4 Il beg your pardon!' Alan said.
The man uttered an imprecation. At
the first sound OF his voice Alan
fhnnOhf fhot r,o.