Abbeville progress. (Abbeville, Vermilion Parish, La.) 1913-1944, 1920-05-15
CHAPTER x.

that. A very much greater grievance
had been thrust upon his mind. Con
ward had preceded him and was al
ready guest of the Hardys.
Dave knew Coward well enough
to know that purpose always lay be-
hind his conduct, and during the small
talk with which they whiled away an
. hour his mind was reaching out
ucutcly. exploring every nook of pos
Sibility, To arrive If it could at some
explanation of the sudden interest
/ which Coward was displaying in the
IIardys. These explanations narrowed
down To two almost equally unpala-
table Coward was deliberately set
/ ting about To capture the friendship
perhaps the affection, of either Mrs
Hardy or Irene. Strangely enough.
/ Eden was more irritated by the for
mpr alternative than by the latter
Perhaps this attitude was due To sui
conscious recognition of the fact tina
he had much more 10 fear from Con.
ward as a sutton for the hand of Mr.
Hardy than as a rival for that OF
Irene. Coward as a prospective
father-in-law was more grievOuS
menace TO his peace of mind than
Coward as a defeated rival.
The more he contemplated this as
pect of the case the less he liked it,
To Coward the affair could be moth
ing more than an adventure, but it
would give him a position of a sort
of semi-paternal authority over both
Irene and Eden.
When at length Mrs. Hardy began
to show signs of WEAKNESS Irene
served coffee and cake. and the two
men, taking that as an intimation that
their welcome had run down, but
would rewind itself II not too con-
tipually drawn upon. left' the house to-
e-ther. On their way they agreed that
it was a very delightful night.
Dave turned the situation over in
his mind with some inn tepce. Irene
had now been in the Tor several
weeks, and he had opportunity
for scarce a dozen onal words
with her. Was he Je baked by
such an .insufferahle claperonags.s it
seemed the gn.pza1spss ss snaA sT
and Coward to establish over his
love AFFAIR." No. In the act of I'M
dressing he told himsel4 "No," suit
ing to the word such vigdF of behavior
that in the morning be found his
shoes at opposite corners of the room.
Several days passed without any
word from Irene, and he had almost
made up his mind to attempt another
telephone appointment, when he met
her, quite accidentally, in the street.
She had been shopping, she said. The
duty of household purchases fell
mainly upon her. Her mother rested
in the afternoons
How about a cup of tea" said
Dave. "And a thin sandwich? And
delicate morsel of cake? One can
always count on thin sandwiches and
delicate mOrsels of cake. Their func-
ton is purely a social one, having no
relation to the physical requirements -
81 should be very glad" said Irene.
They found a quiet tearOom. When
they were seated Dave, without pre-
liminaries, plunged into the subject
nearest his heart.
81 have been wanting an Opportu-
nifty to talk to you-wanting it for
weeks" he said. "But it always
seemed"
always seemed that you were
thwarted," Irene completed his
thought. you didn't disguise your
annoyance very well the other night
do you blame me for being an.
noyedT
mo. But l rather blame you for
showing it. You see 1 was annoyed
too"
Then you had nothing to do with
with bringing about the situation that
existed?"
Certainly not. Surely you do not
think that l would-that / would
81 beg your pardon, Reenie," said
Dave, contritely. II should have
known better. But it seemed such a
strong coincidence"
She was toying with her cup, and
for once her eyes avoided him. "You
should hardly think, Dave" she ven
tured-"yOu should hardly conclude
that-what has been, you know, gives
you the right-entitles you"
ITO a monopoly of your attentions
Perhaps not. But it gives me the
right to a fair chance to win a monop-
oily Of your attentions"
He was speaking low and earnestly,
and his voice had a deep, rich timbre
in it that thrilled and almost fright
ened her. She could not resent his
StraightfOrwardness. She felt that he
was already asserting his claim upon
her, and there was something tender
and delightful in the sense Of being
claimed by such a man.
Il must have a fair chance to win
that monopoly" he repeated. How
did it happen that Coward was pres
ent?"
Il don't know. 1t just happened
A little after you telephoned me he
called up and asked for mother, and
the next thing l knew she said he was
coming up to spend the evening"
Dave dropped into a sudden reverie
1t was not so remarkable as it seemed
that Coward should have telephoned
Mrs. Hardy almost Immediately after
he had used the line. Conward's tele-
phone and Dawes were on the same