The Washington times., 1935-11-22
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Jeff lifted brown eyebrow
smiled slightly. Tremendously.
Whenever stop to think of all
the money you've made me dur
ing the last five years. Get into
some clothes and I'll take you
to dinner. You can't stay here
,.
Francine said, thanks but she
thought she would. She said:
81 can dine on the rest of the
cold chicken and write some let
tiers. and decide what I'm 60
ing to do with my life. You
know, about once in so often I
take a whole evening off and
decide where I am going from
here. tonight is one Of those
times"
They say the Carolinas are
nice in the spring of the year, p"
Jeff suggested, struggling into
his coat, looking about for his
gloves.
Francine said: "Your gloves
are there on the piano, darling,
by the roses. and New York is
nice at any time of the year.
Thanks for coming in and give
me ring some time tomorrow" :"
Jeff said he would and smiled
at her and left her.
She threw another log on the
fire, went into the kitchenette
and made a sandwich out Of
what was left of the chicken,
and some coffee. Presently she
came back with them and drew
a small table up close to the
couch. Then, eating slowly, paus-
ing occasionally to smoke Gig
arctic, she spent the next hour
deciding what she was going to
do about Kipp. Once she had
decided, she stretched out COM
fortably on the couch, covered
herself with a Persian prayer
rug and went to sleep. She slept
soundly, one arm flung over her
face in the freight, her
mouth looked warm and red and
gently expectant.
To say that Kipp did not feel
o pleasurable excitement at the
sound of Francine'S voice coming
to him huskily over the tele-
phone the next morning would
be grossly to misreprent his emo
tions. He did. He had not thought
of her in months. He had no
idea she was in America. So his
first reaction to the sound of her
voice was one of complete sur
prise, followed by a quickening of
his pulse and a swift desire to
see her.
He said: But I didn't know
you we're back how are you?
What sort of a trip did you
f1ave?"
Francine said she was well,
that she had had rather stupid
time and that she was anxious
TO see him.
Kipp said: "of course. 9.
when?"
Francine was sweetly, unexpect-
edly vague. "Soon :"
Kipp said, why not today? He
said then, because the sound Of
her voice had made him eager to
see her, and it seemed the most
natural thing in the world to say:
"Why not let me drop in for a
cocktail this afternoon?"
Fol- a fraction of a second Fran
cine hesitated. Just long enough
for Kipp to regret the suggestion
and be enormously relieved when
she decided: I'm frightfully sorry.
but everything is in the most aw-
full mess here. But, perhaps, we
might meet somewhere . about
5 o'clock?"
Kipp said, of course How
about Icons place? He said it
would be swell seeing her again.
And he meant it. 1t would be.
He realized suddenly that he
hadn't missed her at all. but that
she was stimulating and exciting
and that he was glad she was
back. He thought, She's the sort
of person I need to see occasion
ally.
He went back to his typewriter
and finished the sentence her call
had interrupted. But the next sen
tence eluded him. He lit a cigar.
cite and sat frowning intently at
nothing in particular. He was re.
membering how she had hesitated
at his suggestion that he drop in
at the apartment he was a
little surprised that he had made it
He admitted now that if he had
approached the situation deliber
ately he never would have. That
is, if someone had told him Fran
cine was back in town and had
asked him what he intended to dc
about it. he would have said
Nothing, naturally"
But this hadn't happened; she
had called him on the telephone
instead, and the sound of her voice
coming to him Unexpectedly had
stirred him and made him eager
to see her; and it had seemed the
most natural thing in the world