The Wolf Point herald. (Wolf Point, Mont.) 1913-1940, 1926-07-08

question:, dear, put j nave di"OSS
loved you'll must always have
loved you. Nan, because no other
woman has aver interested me-
She did not raise her eyes; there
was still something she must say
There is Mrs. Mears :" she
said, in a whisper.
There was a moment of amazed
silence; Their Peter laughed. He
laughed with ouch frank surprise
and tender scorn that tears Of relief
stung Mans eyes.
You're not serious" he said.
Why I never gave her a serious
thought She was very good to me,
but she always talked about her
husband, poor chap! If ever a wo-
man loved a man / should say that
she loved him L
Mr.. Seton told me" Nan be-
gan hurriedly; but Peter stopped her.
II forbid you to speak that mans
name, He never spoke the truth in
his life. 1 shall take good are to
let know how he tried to
thrash Claude. and that's not a
pleasant thing for a man to have up
against him"
You forget hat father owes him
money. He'll be more bitter than
ever now"
Your father owes him nothing
Nan, have you forgotten that Ina
not Quite a pauper?'
She raised her startled eyes to his
face. a
You mean hat you-you pa.d
him?" she asked in a whisper.
IT would do a great deal
than that for you" He took her
face in the hollow of his hands
Nan, 1 shall never be able to make
1t up to you-if 1 live to be a hun
dred-for these last weeks"
She closed her eyes.
II want to forget them. I dent
want ever to think of them again"
Already they were slipping into
the background; already the dread
full feeling of happiness irrevocably
lost was less acute.
She laid her cheek against Peters
arm with a little sigh.
II ought to be going" she said
Joan will wonder where l am. /
never told her l was coming out"
You're not going back till you
say that you've forgiven me-tisl
you say that everything is just as it
was, only better-that you love ne
quite as well-that you never cared
a straw for Seton, or John Arnott
His voice grew suddenly grave.
Nan. supposing you'd married
somebody else, and l had not found
out till too late that-that you"
He put his arms round her with sud
den f~erceness. II think it would
have killed me-" he said passionate
ly.
Nan put her arms round his neck
and laid her cheek to his. Somehow
it seemed quite easy to let him know
now how much she cared. She mar
veled that in the old days she had
been SO shy and undemonstrative.
And darling-when will you mar
nv me?p Peter asked in a whisper
She stirred uneasily.
There are the boys; I can't leave
them"
81 don't ask you to-exoept for a
honeymoon; you can't expect me 10
take them all along with ua?' he
submitted whimsically.
She laughed,
II don't think l should mind even
that-if we were together
she raised e head suddenly.
THAT was someone calling-it must
he Jo-a. Come-we mus 70
back"
He caught her to him and kissed
her again-a long kiss that swept
away the last doubt and shadow b
tween them, then they went bacN
down the road hand in hand
Joan met them at the eato-AaE
small face looked pale and s.aIeI-I
in the faint moonlight.
ooh. thank goodness she saia
when she saw Nan. Il thoarht
Then she recognized Peter. and drew
a long sigh of relief.
And this, 1 suppose" she said
breathlessly. lis the end OF the
story"
Peter Lyster looked at Mana 0
that brought a lump 10 }oane
throat. and made her long for TIE
| adored Tim more than ever. II such
a thing were possible,
NO" he said steadily. Its onsy
the beginning"