Evening star., 1909-06-12


Leap. And there. lulled by the soft voices
of the forest. she had lain upon a thick
carpet of pine needles until the setting
sun rested even upon the bare hills.
At length. however. she rose to her feet
and picked up the book at her side. As
she did so, there dropped from between
its leaves a letter-or. rather. a part Of
a letter for the first pages were missing.
STOPPING. she picked it up from its resting
place and was about to replace it between
the pages of the book when her own name
caught her eye.
Unconsciously. and quite naturally. she
glanced at the words that preceded and
followed:
the way in which Barbara Ladd has
treated Bob Remington. feel that have
no great desire to meet her. Women who
will torture a man for the pleasure of
watching him squirm, and open his soul
jus; to see what lies therein. as a child
looks at the works Of watch. do not ap-
peal to me. But other matters will bring
me. and if it will Inconvenience you to
put me next to some one else at dinner.
] will consent to the ordeal Of sitting by
ducement
Sincerely yours,
GORDON STEELE"
There was a postscript, but she did not
read 1t: for she had awakened suddenly
to the fact that the letter was intended
for other eyes than hers: and a bright
flush flashed quickly across the delicate
whiteness Of her cheek. She replaced the
letter between the leaves OF the book and
with flashing eyes and surging heart
TUNED to retracs her steps to the lodge.
She met Steele at dinner that night.
EA bent his head in conventional ac-
knowledgment Of their introduction ana
seated himself beside her at the table.
And, throughout the meal. they chatted
calmly, facilely. upon trivialities and COM
monplaces. each yelling true feelings.
each burying under a flood Of CONVERSE
tional nothings that about which each
would have liked to speak.
For. as he gazed at the proudly poised
head. with its wealth of golden brown
hair. the dark. honest eyes and the sem
sitive mouth, he somehow or other found
it difficult to believe that which his cold
Judgment had told him was 80. And In
knew. and what she thought was great
very great.
At a house party, which includes one
married couple and two engaged couples.
1t would seem that remaining guests
must perforce. make up their minds to be
much in each others company. But
somehow or other. Steele found himself
baffled in every attempt to bring about
q tete-a-tete with this girl who had be-
come to him a most tantalizing enigma.
For underneath the gay raillery of her
wit he continually caught glmpses Of a
tender seriousness. a keen sense OF fair
play and a quick sympathy. He felt
confounded. puzzled. by these inconsistent
cies between the woman he had made up
his mind to dislike and the woman he
was finding so charming.
Her cleverness in keeping up friendly
attitude toward him In the presence of
the others, and yet evading situations III
which they would be left alone together.
aroused his admiration. BY the end Of
the third day Steele found himself think
ing Of very little else except possible and
impossible reasons for her evident an
tipathy toward him.
Then. to his surprise, on the following
afternoon, when their hostess suggested
for them a horseback run to the Fells she