The Ocala evening star. [volume] (Ocala, Fla.) 1895-1943, 1922-03-21


Tony scowled again. 1t was part
of his charm for her that he was the
spoiled darling of fortune. Handsome
and young, and with no family ties to
restrain him, he had recently come
into his own enormous fortune. His
manner with servants, his ready check
book, his easy French, and his unruf
fed self-confidence in any imaginable
! contingency, coupled with his youth,
! had strong attraction for a woman
, conscious of the financial restrictions
; of her own early years and the limita-
tons of her public-schOOl education.
why don't you go to the club and
dress now, and come back and dine
with us?" she said, in an undertone.
do you want meT he asked,
sulkily.
I'm asking you"
For answer he stood up. and smiled
wstfully down upon her, with a hest
fancy she knew well how to interpret
in his eyes. He had been longing so
thirstily for just that permission, and
she had been yearning so to give it
Happiness came back into both their
hearts as he turned to go, and she
gave him just quick touch of warm
little hand in farewell.
Other guests had come in, and Miss
Field was extremely busy, and Ward,
helping her officially, was busy, too.
"Fun to have you down here! !" he said,
In her ear
3 ,,~4 ho1 ocf1
! maid regarding hot water. Then she
! gave Ward an indufgent, an older-sis-
terly glance He was in years almost
! twenty-five but at twenty-seven the
| young woman felt him ages her junior.
/ He was a joyous. irresponsible boy,
| and he and his mothers secretary had
| always been good friends since the
/ day. four years ago now when the
! silent, somewhat grave Harriet Field
| had first made her appearance il the
family The young people loved her;
Richard Carter occasionally said to
his wife every clever-very pretty
| grill" which was perhaps as close as
| he ever got to any domestic matter,
and Isabelle confided to her almost all
[
curious, had gathered no more than
that Miss Harriet's father had been a
college professor of languages, and
that her only relative was married
sister, Linda, much older, who had
four children, and lived in New Jer-
sey.
She was q master of the art of keep
ing silent, this young woman, and but
for her beauty she might have been
as inconspicuOus as she sincerely
tried to be. But her simple gowns and
her plainly massed hair only served
10 emphasize the extraordinary dis
sir ction of her appearance, and her ut
most effort to obliterate herself could
not quite keep her from notice. Old
Mrs Carter, who for reasons perfectly
comprehensive in an old lady who
had once been handsome herself, de-
tested Harriet, and said to her
daughter-in-law that in her opinion
there was something queer about the
girl.
i She was of that always-arresting
type that combines warm dusky skin
with blue eyes and fair hair. The
eyes. in her case were a soft smoky
blue. set in thick and inky black
laShes, and the hair was braSSy gold,
; banded carelessly but trinity about her
rather broad forehead. Her mouth
was wide, deep crimson, thin-lipped ;
it was a mouth of secrets and of myS-
, terry, of character, a mouth that had
, known the trembling of pain and grief,
, perhaps. but a firm mouth now, and
, beautiful one.
Looking at her, an artist would
| have fancied her bold and charming
and boyish-looking little girl, fifteen
; years ago, with that Greek chin and
! that tawny name would have seen her
: sexless and splendid. in her early teens,
with fiat breast and an untamed eye.
= And a romancer might have wondered
: what paths had led her. in the superb
realization of her beautiful woman
7 hood. at twenty-seven, to this subor-
r dinate position in the home of self
made rich man, and this conventional
tea table on a terrace over the Hud
2 son.
y Nearly half-past five, Nina" she
said, presently. "Go and change and
r brush that's a darling! You look
/. rather tumbled"
Nina. reaching for q maroon. obedi
emily wandered away. and Immediately
: the empty chair beside Harriet was
: taken by newcomer, Richard Garter
y himself, the owner of all this smiling
estate. who had come up from the
j little launch at the landing, hat
3 changed hastily into white fannels