Five Mile Beach weekly journal., 1910-04-22

HC4 H N. J, FRIDAY. APRIL y.
cn is a purely business transac-
Hay. surer
'Hbu would have paid as much to
anS n else?"
HBeen glad to-"
nd about your offer of Hewington
Straight business"
''Then | accept both proposals. She
paused. then spoke softly. Good aft.
ernoon. MI. Devine."
As he had found her. so she stood
when he turned to leave the library.
About her erect figure there was al
mOst the suggestion of a highly strung
bow. which be took to mean that she
was immensely displeased with him.
What a mess he had made of every
thing. to be surei
Absorbed in these uncomfortable
reflections, the Cherub narrowly es-
capped q collision with the solemnly
alert Eppings, who had stalked for
ward to open the door.
The Cherub hesitated. Was it his
Characteristic reluctance to aeknowl-
edge defeat or q sense of not having
lived up to his own code? He might
at least have told her he was sorry.
wait a minute. Eppings. Guess I've
forgotten something"
A few resolute strides took him
back into the room where he had left
her. Perhaps she had not gone No;
there she was, but Why, what was
up now? 1t vas quite obvious that
the Countess Vecchi had buried her
face In the window draperies and was
leaning against the wall of the
Moreover. from the convulsive rise
and fall of her shoulders it looked as
If she were sobbing.
"Ohr AS she wheeled quickly to-
ward him. saw who it was. realized
that he was standing there looking at
her. she dabbed furtively at her brim-
ming eyes with a wholly inadequate
handkerchief. I'll thought" she
went on. that you had-had'-
"Yes, but l came back. You're not
crying, are you?"
Crying! Certainly notw
MOP"
"Well, If was, I'm not now. l
shall not a~gain-ever."
That's right. You see, countess.
I'm going to feel bad enough about
this fuke of mine to do for both of
us. That's what l came back to say.
don't know just how to put 1t, but If
there's anything l can do to make you
forget that there's such a person as
Cherub Devine I'll do 1t, even If it
comes to jumping off the dock"
'There-there isn't anything"
well, maybe it'll be some satisfac
sion to you to know that l feel like
well, like fi~ve-eighths off and nothing
bid. Honest. l never meant to tell
Nick. l was just going to- The
Cherub faltered.
"You were going to do what?" sug
gested the countess.
"Why. to spring it on you. oh. |
can guess what you would say to 1t.
but-but- See here, countess. l could
rot help it. You're the best l ever
knew. Just seeing you these few days
made things seem worth while. Why.
LL1nsa know what | was living for
And thefl be7ofe / Knew how
d gone | was seeing nothing but
l wish l could tell you all about
that countess"
mo, no; you mustn't" Again she
turned to the draperies, hiding her
flushed face in her hands.
Maybe If you hadn't read SO many
of those newspaper yarns about me-
ut isn't that; truly it is not" came
in muffied tones from the countess.
'Of course | can see where | don't
Measure up with the kind of men
you've known. and l tried to keep that
In mind all the time. but-well. |
couldn't do 1t, that's all. You see. |
Invent had much use for women !
thought they were all alike. But you
you're different. countess. / wish /
Was different too. l wish l was more
like Nick. If | was perhaps l could
make you see how much l need you
bow Oh. say. countess, couldn't you
just let me say
s"No. no; don't say it, pleased" This
came family, for her face was still
; hidden.
"All right. | won't" The Cherub
seemed to be swallowing the words
If q \ =