The Washington times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1902-1939, 1936-08-11

"Cer-tain-lee I'm the party. Was
he beeg, and dark, and veree good
looking?"
The boy nodded. "You said 1t.
miss"
THANK you. Good evening"
said Yvonne graciously. This It'd
BIT would come in useful. AS she
walked off, she smiled Whimsically
to herself.
Luana wore a simple gray suit
that evening, and little gray hat.
Lets ride on the top of a Fifth
Avenue bus, Jimmy"
He hailed a taXicab.
Darling, I couldn't wait an
other minute to kiss you" he said
boyishly, the moment they were
seated in it, and he had given the
driver the address of the little roof
restaurant on Central Park South.
She Struggled against him,
happy to the very core of her be-
ing.
"Luana, you feel the same as
you did last night? You're sure
you haven't thought better of it?"
he asked anxiously, between kisses.
Better and better. That's how
it's going to be between us-for.
ever-you stupid old darling!"
II love you, Luana. I didn't
sleep a wink all night, thinking Of
you"
II did," she laughed shakily, II
dreamed of you, Jimmy. That
was whole lot nicer"
Were crazy, Jimmy darling.
We're behaving like couple of
kids"
They were healthily hungry,
and did full justice to the chicken
cacciatore and risotto ala milan
csc while enjoying Straw-covered
flask Of chianti. Jimmy's thoughts
went back for brief moment to
the elaborate dinner of last eve
ming at the home of Mrs. Wanda
Veer. This was an infinitely
gayer meal. He didn't want to
think of Mrs. Vandaveer, with the
one girl in the world sitting op-
poSite him. He was glad that
the table was so tiny that their
knees could touch, as they ate.
Jimmy, what a perfectly Won
derful old ring! Where on earth
did you get hold of it?"
He had been expecting that
question. It had seemed strange
that she hadn't noticed it last
night in the gardens of the inn.
He had been wondering what ex-
PLANTATION he could make about it.
Tell her that Mrs. Vandaveer
had placed it on the little finger
of his left hand, and he had
thought it but Whim, until she
implored him not to take it off?
That to remove it would bring
bad luck not only to himself, but
to her?
How extraordinary that would
sound to the girl he loved, the
girl who loved him!
To add that the Influence" of
the same woman had effected his
exchange to Paris on a three
months course in architecture
would be an equally difficult
piece of news.
He cursed himself for fool to
have let Mrs. Vandaveer go
through with it. His only ex-
cuse was that he hadn't realized
his feeling for Luana. In fact,
he had been fighting against it..
He had put ambition before
Luana. Now he didn't want to
leave Luana. He was in the
dickens of a fix.
'The ring came from Flor
ence. from an antique shop on
the Ponte Vecchio-the Old
Bridge"
why. I'd no notion you'd
been in Italy" said Luana, lean
ing forward to examine the
chased design, her eyes bright
with interest.
He was about to say: "Nor
have L" But thought better
of it.
Now was not the time to bring
up Mrs. Vandaveer. He would
explain later.
Its perfectly beautiful, jim
my, but somehow you're the last
person I could imagine wearing
fancy rings"
He grinned a little sheepishly.
"It's for good luck"
I'm going to bring you good
luck-oodles of it. darling"
whispered Luana gaily.
But a question remained in
her eyes.
Funny that Jimmy looked awk-
ward about the ring. She distinctly
remembered now that on their
first meeting, he had told her that
he had never been to Europe.
CHAPTER xxx
At table near them was party
Of prim gray-haired women.
When the music stopped, Luana
could hear them address each
other by the prefix Miss" and
talk of their classes and pupils.