The Sauk Centre herald. (Sauk Centre, Stearns County, Minn.) 1886-current, 1912-07-04
but didn't suppose she'd try to
break things up between Jimmy and

| He doesn't deserve you, Norma,
began Billy angrily, and then remem-
bered that he was criticising Stella az
well, he was silent awhile.
81 can't understand women's vanity,
Norma, and wouldn't believe this Of
her from anyone but you. You're too
good little friend and too truthful
not to be believed. Let's help each
other out. Does anyone but me know
how you feel about Strafford?"
She shook her head mot a soul!"
rye been SO ashamed Of flirting with
Jerry Peters just to hide my real
feelingsi I'll stop or go straight
home"
You'll stay right here! Going
would be confession. Tell you.
Normie, let's stay right by each
other. You flirt with me-and I'll 1irt
with you, and we won't mind what
anyone thinks. It may bring those
two people to time. What do you
say?" The girl nodded, but her heart
was sore that James Stanford would
yield to the aggressive, sparkling, al
most malicious destinations of Stella
the moment she tried them on him.
Billy was comfort, and she told him
so. They went back to the others.
The next few weeks saw a queer
change in the affairs Of the dozen
| young people, most of them out at
Billy's summer home for a couple of
months. Billy and Norma were al.
ways together, inseparable.
AS Stanford saw Norma so obliv.
| tous of him, he began to think of her
more and more, wondering if Stella
was, after all, the one girl for him
One morning he asked Norma for a
that she was golfng with Billy that
day. No, she wouldn't go out on the
| lake in the evening-Billy wanted her
| to learn a new song.
Behind them stood Stella, queer
look on her piquant, brown little face.
Sauntering off to the garden, she man.
aged to run against Billy-she was
sweet and appealing and meek. She
hadn't seen anything of him, he was
so busy with his duties of host. She
would be glad when he wasn't so
| busy. She dimpled and sparkled, her
| old self to him, but somehow he could
not rise to the old ready alteration
Of the girl. Loyal himself, he loved
| loyalty in another. 1t was not that
| he couldn't forgive, but he saw lack
Of quality in her. She, to satisfy mere
vanity, had hurt him, hurt Norma
| and perhaps STAFFORD Billy was
grave. Cautiously enough, he led
her back to the house and started
with Norma for the links.
On the veranda STAFFORD also was
looking after them. Stella turned to
him with a queer little laugh.
Quite a case, don't you think, jim
N.Y."
He frowned Suddenly he didn't
! like her to call him Jimmy" though
he had begged her to do SO not very
long before. Neither did he like the
light tone about Norma. He made
some excuse and sulked away by him
self with his pipe.
Out on the links Billy and Norma
golfed and laughed. They had sought
| comfort and had found it.
1t was the evening that followed
that Stella made discovery. Billy
and Norma had walked out on the
| moonlit beach and sat together on
! the sand watching stiff breeze send
| the waves tapping up at the shore line.
| Billy put his arm over Norma's Shout
der with a loving little movement.
A light laugh made them both start,
but instinctively Billy kept his arm
| where it was. They looked up and
saw Stella and Stanford, the latter
| walking unwillingly as though he
wished he were elsewhere. Stella
laughed again.
What charming little scene! I
hope We do not interrupt? Is it real
or just improvised, Romeo?" She ad-
dressed Billy and was answered by
him.
Norma and I are real people-we
| don't improvise on theme ike-love.
It's real. Isn't it, Normal"
She nodded. Suddenly she knew
that she and Billy loved each other
deeply and sweetly, and that these
( other people and their little jealousies
and weaknesses meant nothing to
either Of them. But there was still
enough feminine malice in the girl to
make her ask sweetly of Stella:
"And you? Am 1 to wish you"
| STAFFORD broke in rather angrily:
Don't be absurd! Stella doesn't en-
Joy that any more than-I do, and
you know It! Won't you and Billy
come back to the house with us?"
Having put himself on record,
STAFFORD knew Stella would expect
no more of him. What did she de-
serve? He told himself that every
thing was her fault. Hang girls, any
how! He made for the smoking room
and his worst old pipe at the first pos
sible moment. He leaned back and
blew rings, and tried not to see Norma
as bride. That was little too much
for Stanford at that time.
Peculiar Albanian DueIs.