The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1921-03-16
The Woman
He Married
BY JANE PHELPS
A NEW ACQUAINTANCE
Z Chapter 90.

A NEW ACQUAINTANCE
Chapter ~93.
We had gradually formed few ac-
quaintances. Among them was a
woman who had bungalow near us
"a fascinating. temperamental sort of
creature, who attracted and repealed
me at the same time. She was eff
fectively blonde. tall and willowy,
almost cruel lurking in her eyes when
ever she raised the thick dark lashes.
sd unusual with hair SO golden.
She was an eccentric dresser. yet
her gowns seemed someway to belong
to her. I told he. soon after we met
her of my drapery shop, and she per-
suaded me to do her bungalow for
! her. / was awfully glad of the chance.
Dick was doing nicely with his writ
ing, but we had not been able to build
the modest house we had planned.
She wrote queer fantastic tales,
weird things that certain magazines
occasionally published, and it was thru
| her interest in Dicks work (perhaps
p pretended interest. later thought),
that we became acquainted. She soon
got into the habit of running over and
asking Dick to read her stories, to
criticise.
ut is such joy to have someone
tell me where I can improve them, y
she said to me. and smilingiy agreed.
Then after / commenced to fix up
her bungalow. she was even more
often with Dick, talking over their
ideas, comparing notes, ct cetera.
Dick seemed to be interested in her.
| but I laid it all to their similarity OF
occupation, altho she told US she had
an income sufficient for her wants
| had she not sold anything from her
| pen.
At times they would, take long
| walks Sometimes I went along, but
oftener they went alone, leaving me
busy with her bungalow.
Not thought of danger in this In
| timacy entered my mind, not doubt
of Dicks loyalty. Had we known
| more people, gone out more often, l
might have been wakehed. But it
seemed to me only natural that they
should be interested in each other s
| work. I never put in on personal
basis.
1t took me nearly all my spare time
| for two months to decorate the bunga-
| low. In that time she and Dick were
constantly together. She had taught
Junior to call her aurt--Aunt Mia.
Her name was Juanita. and before
long we both called her so. and she
called us Nan and Dick.
Sometimes when she would come
over after dinner in some trailing
gown that made her even more lovely,
/ would feel rather cut of place in
my simple house dress. Then the
| thought of what clothes had once done
| to me would make me satisfied again
land I would put aside the slightest
| envious feeling. She coufqf a ford to
wear those lovely perishable things j
couldn't! So I would dismiss all
thoughts of the sort, and not notice
how admiringly Dick looked at her.
So must have been blind, blind and
stupid. Yet never noted anything
| in her actions, or in Dicks, to cause
me to fear she was becoming any,
thing more than writer-friend 10
him. Neither did I realize, because
did not know anything about it, how
people who do things. people of tenn
permanent, especially artists and
| writers, are swayed by their emotions.
Dicks illness and the long solitude
of the desert had developed all the
| latent temperament in him. Now with
| her by his side, with her queer far
| fetched notions. her almost immoral
views of life, of the relations OF mon
! and women. he was at times hard to
nderstand-moody one day, bright
| and full of energy and enthusiasm the
next. s
I had no idea that this change in
| him was due to Juanita, or that she
| had anything to do with his uncertain
|
was OVERRIDING, SO used to urge them
| to stop talking shop and get out in the
| open.
Dick never failed to ask me to ac-
company them, was even more
scrupulously careful to defer to me.
| But I would laugh and tell them had
work to do. E
You two scribblers run along and
make up stories, while you get the
air." often said, and they would go
away together, perhaps to be gone for
hours.
| But when they returned they In
variably told me where they had been.
| talking of their time together SO nat
| urally, taking my interest SO for
granted, that never had the slightest
suspicion that / was putting tempta-
| ton in Dicks way--that he was be-
coming too fond of Juanita for my
| happiness.
Yet Dick was only human. And
| Juanita was very lovely. very fasci-
mating. izss>>2s s-7s.E-
! Tomorrow-Juanita plans to give a
house WA rrf1if1gA