The Morning Tulsa daily world. [volume] (Tulsa, Okla.) 1919-1927, 1922-08-20

and hadn't seen any OF II she
was on the defensive to offer an alibi. What, then,
A she been watching? AS usual, Flo swung
from the hip.
NO, old dear" she gugled, 1--WE been too busy
talking-to Ford"
"Oh." said Hilda, and Ford held his breath to see
how she would expand on that ejaculation. oh
you shouldn't have missed the game. Marty was
Just too wonderful. I'm so proud of him!"
1t didn't strike Flo at all that If Hilda was proud
Of Marty Homer Just because he was a Brentwylder
she was assuming a lot of territory. She took It as
Just making conversation" in Hilda's famous man.
ner of girlishness and gushing sincerity. But Ford
coughed.
Flo scarcely heard the cough and It meant moth
ing to her. But to Hida it was a swan song. She
rose and walked to where Homer was receiving the
congratulations OF o little knot of pals, for his win
had put him into the s~emisemi-fnals or something
OF the sort, with no one to beat now but about six
crack racqueteers that he couldn't get away with
In a million years.
Homer was a tennisbug. Be it known that a whist
nut, a golf loon, a three.cushion billiards cuckoo and
a dance fiend, all rolled into one, is sane and has
broadly catholic tastes as compared with a tennis
bug. Homer lived tennis. He was a decently we'll.
TODD bachelor with this lone failing; and that one
was all OF them combined, for the world was to
him a fuzzy tennis ball.
No one had ever associated his name with any
one girl. He mingled, but only hazily and imper.
sonally. II he could have liked any girl he would
have loved Hilda, for he thought her the prettiest
thing he had ever seen-but that had never reg
istered in him an urge beyond asking her to dance
when he had to dance, or bringing her a cup OF
punch when he felt that he really should bring
someone something.
But now Hida walked up to him-now, in his
hour Of victory, when he had downed,another busher
who was mad over a game he would never learn to
play. Homer felt that the eyes of the club were on
him; that he would be the t~ongue-tip topic OF the
lounge that evening. And Hilda walked up to him
Just then, put her tiny hand in the crook Of the arm
that held the historic racquet, and with her pretty
blue eyes sparkling and her pretty red lips smiling
she peeped:
"oh. Marty--I think you played like a wizard.
I'm sure you'll win the club cup. I'm sure l hope
you viii, Martyr
They say when a man is good and sick or good
and swellheaded a girl has him with his guard
down. Martin Homer felt a rush Of blood to his
brow.
He bent over and thanked Hilda. Then. before
he himself knew 1t, he had taken her Dresden china
hand in his-in his racquet hand-and squeezed Il
and told her she was mighty sweet to say so-he
really hadn't played up to his best form-had n
touch of Charlie horse in his left knee.
Hilda beamed up at him. ID,
at couldn't have been more than a Charlov.ponv."
FS'NN
she yodled, from the way you got over the court"
And Homer laughed-and felt a strange impulse
to seize her and kiss her-right there, before every.
body, as Valentino would have done in a picture.
Ford felt him feel it.
And he felt a strange Charley.horse in his ankles
and a weird ringing in his ears,
Flo was talking at him.
"Now that the prelim dubs are through, we may
see some action she suggested.
But Ford wasn't listening. He mumbled some
thing that might have been interpreted as "'Cuse
me- and started toward the little group around
Homer. A dozen necks craned at the move. Leav.
Ing Flo-that was a bit of a sensation. But. He
was stfiding toward Hilda-to Hilda-he was WITH
Hilda-he was bending down over her and talking
TO her he - he no, Il couldn't be. Yes
. . II could it A
Ford had taken Hilda's arm and was slowly walk.
ing her away from Homer, who was standing with
open mouth. Ford was walking her at q tangent,
away from Homer, away from Flo. away from
SIGHT!
And they never even saw the professional match.
They were scudding off somewhere in Ford Bate
ly's racing car And ~nobobdy ever saw them again
until they returned from their honeymoon, by
which time Homer was as far out OF the RUNNING
In the tennis elimination as Flo was in the matrt