The Ocala evening star. [volume] (Ocala, Fla.) 1895-1943, 1921-02-18

can't disregard her wishes" the girl
told herself forlornIy. But / don't
want Courtney and his millions
want Billy and his Eve dollars a col
hmm -
| Yef three days later Billy. white
Tipped, received his answer. "She's
given me everything" faifered yir-
gfnfa.
Billy looked appraisingiy at the
Rubens above the manfel, at the tea
cabinet with its priceless objects
Dart. nj the velvet hangings through
which one gIimpsed tiled vistas. Then
he shook his head "a great deal.
admit" he said. ''but not quite every
thing" The next moment he was
gone.
Virginia stood an he had left her.
longing to run after him and reiterafe
how little the money meant to her.
how Il had come to seem dreadful
Ibogey in her life debating her actions.
| how-slowly she turned upstairs to her
aunt's boudoir to enter into consulfa-
tion over the making Of her trousseau.
For twenty-four hours before she
said. NO. TO Billy. she had said.
sYes." to Courtney Van Breck.
II Came the lovely month of June. In
the gardens early roses blossomed on
balustrade and pergola. shedding their
fragrance everywhere. June-the
month of weddings
But for one of those weddings. a
wedding in which engravers and mo-
distes and caterers and florists and
1.-THE clty's highest paid quartette were
Ito share. the bride waited heavy
hearted
Each morning Virginia woke with
4he thought. isn't there some way
outY And each night she sought her
Louis XVI bed convinced that there
| wasn't. Perhaps If there had been
no Billy in the background, it would
have been easier. although she felt
that she could never have loved Court
ney.
Only, lie she couldn't have Billy,
Courtney did as well as any other.
He was older than she, but she had
always known him. A few years ago
he had been engaged to woman who
had quite suddenly and inexplicably
married somebody else. And Virginia
/ fancied that. on the whole, he cared
no more for her than she did for him.
1t was evidently for them both just a
suitable marriage"
Three days before the wedding, Vir-
ginfa begged respite from dinner
1 dancao ord bridal fupcbooaS rloa dino
the need for rest to look her best on
the great day. Aunt Julia finally
/ yielded and packed Virginia off to a
| quiet little inn In the Berkshires with
the elderly woman who acted as maid.
She even agreed not to tell Courtney
of her niece's "hiding place." figuring,
perhaps, that 1t was a girlish within
more easy to crafty than most.
/ Quiet the inn In the Berkshires GER
tainly was at that time of the season
/ but not so utterly forsaken that
| occasional motoring parties did not
roll up the winding, graveled drive for
i quiet chicken dinners I'm its famous
grill.
Such party arrived one day as
Il
to face. she met them-Courtney and
the woman 70 whom he had once been
| engaged-and the tender regard of the
glance which Virginia interrupted
left no doubt OF the feeling he still
| entertained.
Virginia stood stock still. For q
minute the silence Numbered. Then
with an unuttered but heartfelt
THANK heaveni" on her lips, the girl
turned away. her head high.
Three months later the Gardner
4limousine drove slowly out of the ivy.
covered gateway of the Gardner resi-.
dence on Ridgely road Severely erect
on the cushioned seat sat an uncom
promising figure who looked askapce
through the window as the scenery
unrolled-first elm-shaded drives; then
pavements, then succession of ir.
regular streets blocked out with non.
descript houses.
In front of one of these the machine
came slowly TO a stop ST shall be
here only a few minutes" the lady
said as she alighted. 'pThen you may
drive to Nine Pritchard's."
She walked up the irregular patti
marked with borders of eandytuft
Love in a COTTAGE she shifted
/ At that instant the door was flung
open. aAuntiei" cried a radiant yir
ginia with no air of penitence what
ever. "Oh, Billy r'-this to depths
within. Aunt Julia has come to SEE
usi"
| Under the jubilant welcome of thu
tall. smiling-eyed man and the effer
vescing. chattering Virginia, Aunt in
liza thawed bit. How well the CIR
was looking.
"And this is our Kitchen" cried vir
ginia, who was doing the honors. "at
least, we call it kitchen because Il
has sink. And this is the den and
very important because IL is where
Billy practices the wonderful editor
ials he is going to write some day
Isn't il so, Billy? You know he ism
with the Courier now. He's got &
much better position with the Star.