The Washington herald., 1922-11-19

days-and each was more WONDER
full than the last.
The weeks at Thurston cottage
had equipped her well for the fac
ing Of q more trying social round.
Her poise left little to be desired;
her self assurance increased daily.
In the greatness Of her happiness
she forgot to be nervous. Dan
had chosen her from among all
other women-therefore she must
have claim indeed to some real
and potent attraction.
She told herself this without
vanity, but with complete salts
faction. She took more and more
interest in her personal appearance
in her clothes. Beauty she
might not possess, but distinction
assuredly was hers. Her coloring,
and the dark lashed brilliancy of
her eyes made her noticeable.
The joyous radiance of her youth
was her most valuable asset Of all.
The time came when far prettier
women than herself were not look
ed at while she was in a room.
Men liked her for her unaffec, ed
gaiety and quick wit. Women
found her disarmingly amiable and
deferential where Difference was
due, She possessed the art Of
making herself really popular; in
consequence she was everywhere
voted a success.
Both Fancy and Billy watched
her with an interest that was in
creasingly affectionate. The for
mer really liked her; it was a lik-
ing which Of late seemed to grow
warmer, and which, secretly, rather
amazed both Fanshawe and Dan
Revell. To each it would have
seemed more natural had Fancy
shown her antagonism, however
skilfully veiled. Yet each was i'm
measurably relieved that such was
not the case; while Billy, at any
rate, was forced anew to the real
ization that Fancy was anything
but an ordinary woman.
As the weeks slipped by he grew
more and more puzzled by her.
That feverish love of gaiety and
excitement which had been hers
previous to their marriage seemed
utterly to have deserted her. For
the first few weeks that they were
in town she had seemed-with
something of an effort-to fling
herself into the whirlpool of en-
joyment. Then, abruptly. she had
grown weary.
She went about, Of course, but
less and less. She grew listless,
difficult to please, capricious-and
she looked i'll. There were times
when she was Unexpectedly, even
warmly friendly toward him
when she seemed, almost wistfully,
to look for his companionship.
There were others when she
ignored him altogether, or else
snubbed him with malicious merci-
lessness. He understood her less
and less. He knew moments Of
rather dreary wonder as to what
the future was to hold for them
bOth-Of dull hurt at her indif-
feren e. And then he would thrill
at the remembral :e of an unex-
pected touch or smile-and again
would grow anxious, watching the
deepening shadows beneath the
beautiful, restless eyes
Once, solicitously, he had COM
mented upon her changed appear
ance the manner in which she had
received his we'll meant sympathy
had startled and dismayed him
and had left him vaguely wonder
ing.
She had started almost quiltily
anh he fame which had swept her
cheeks had been s. pitilessly vivid
that he had stared at her in amaze.
Then she had flung at him a
b. eathless, stammeringly furious
denial.
"Ill! Of course not! How
utterly absurd you are. Because
I'm old fashioned enough to pre-
fer my own complexion TO the
kind II comes out of a pot must
l be 'ill'? My dear Billy, if you
admire the milkmaid type so much
you oughtn't to have married
me-"
And, till with her cheeks
ablaze, and that odd, half guilty,
half scared look deep beneath the
scorn of her eyes, had left him,
shutting the door uncompromis-
ingly in the face of his bewildered
'pologies.
In increasing perplexity he had
somewhat tentatively approached
Sally upon the subject.
q" ant understand her." he
protested. "She always seems
tir d iately-and I'm sure she'd
far rather stay at home than go
to the gayest kind of affair. And
when she isn't playing she's sewing
it really isn't natural, Sally-nct
for woman like Fan 'yv
Sally had ierked herself back
from her happy gazing into her
own future and h1inkinO her eves