Audubon County journal. (Exira, Iowa) 1884-1993, 1904-12-08
coming his way. He felt exhilarated,
triumphant. boyish. Miss Grant laugh

coming his way. He felt exhilarated,
triumphant, boyish. Miss Grant laugh
ed rather foolishly rs she greeted him.
Il was playing a game that has been
Il favorite of mine since | was Il small
girl she explained as they turned
away from the window together. "a
game of make believe in which | ar
range everything in life to suit myself.
Nettie and l-Nette was my. best
friend. You know-used to spend hours
describing our husbands, houses and
children to each other. 1t was great
fun. | can tell you. and we entered into
details until it actually seemed real"
She paused ana glanced up at him to-
see il he understood and then contin-
ueti, When YOU came up | WAS just
furnishing !, love of house i'll thought,
selecting the color scheme for my
walls, you know"
Mowbray listened, almost too rapt to
speak. There WAS something thrilling
in the knowledge that her thoughts
had been the very complement of his.
a strange. strong happiness and GER
tainty possessed him
would YOU mind telling me whether
the husband that you planned bore any
resemblance to me-" he questioned
daringly
She regarded him critically. then
shook her head. Don't think me rude,
She murmured; but, to tell you the
truth. he was always six feet tall and
blond. Once l remember when we had
reached the end of Il game-that is,
seen our daughters grow up and marry
we began all over again, and for a
change | chose Il dark. cold man who
filed me with Il delicious fear. But
was always forgetting and barking
back to my favorite type. so at last I
gave up.
TOO bad. too bad" murmured her
companion, but his tone implied that
his pity was for her disappointment
rather than his own. They walked
along in silence for awhile, absorbed in
their thoughts and the lively scene
about them, yet strangely conscious of
each other At last Mowbray spoke.
Il don't see how the thing is coming
out" he began. with feigned bewilder-
ment for when the sights and sounds
Of early spring suddenly made me
homesicl for the thing I've never had
IA home"-
His voice grew low, and he paused Il
second. as if the thought We're too sa-
cred to be mentioned lightly. Elinor's
heart went out to him, though she
stubbornly kept her glance fixed indif-
ferently on the crowd about them.
1T was Your face that rose before
me instantly; your eyes that looked
| into mine; your dear presence that
| felt in the house that | planned, like u
| benedicton. Il caress You were the
spirit of the place, its queen, the gra-
ciouS woman to whom | fancied my
self coming home each night with Il
deeper, fuller love-
A needless pedestrian jostled them,
| all unconscious OF the fact that in do
| ing so he had rudely brushed against
| the sweetest thing in the world-a love
story They continued their way, al
most in silence, until the bewilderins
greenery of the park turned by spring
magic into fairyland confronted them.
In flash Elinor seemed to see he
life stretching away into the future
transformed into Il beauty as match
less as that before her, by love.
| She laid her hand upon Mowbray'
arm and gaZed ut him for Il moment
| with her soul i'll her eyes.
after ALL" she said very softly, 81
believe that you dreamed true!"