The Coolidge examiner., 1937-12-16

There was somebody in town who
cared. He was going out to din
ner! He was going to see Alice
again! His heart was warm and
eager.
The disturbing thought came that
she had married again after one
sharp experience, and was again
divorced.
He was full Of anticipation as he
prepared for the evening, even
whistling a wild bar or two of a nom
descript song.
When he stood at last in the or
nate vestibule of Alice's apartment
waiting to be let in, his manner was
cool, repressed, self-contained.
Greg entered the strangest-look-
ing room he had ever seen. There
were hangings Of black velvet and
silver cloth, and lot of queer, tri-
angular mirrors in unexpected
places. There were flowers every
where, rare hothouse flowers. 1t
suddenly occurred to Greg that he
ought to have sent her flowers.
1t occurred to him to wonder who
had sent her these roses. Great yell
low ones with a glow of crimson in
their hearts, dozens of them in a
copper bowl reflected in a slab of
mirror on a low table. Crimson
roses in a tall crystal vase. Did
Alice buy these roses for herself?
Was she. rich enough now to revel
in luxuries of this sort, or did other
men send them to her? The uneasy
question shot like a pang through
his heart, and then he saw her COM
ing and forgot everything else.
She was wearing a frail evening
frock of green satin. Her face was
like a lovely flower, and her pale
gold hair was drawn back smooth
and close about her small symmet-
rical head and gathered into knot
in her neck, leaving her pretty lit
tie ears uncovered, and giving her
an innocent, childlike air which the
vivid dash of carmine on her small
petulant lips only half belied.
A necklace glittered on the white
ness of her neck. there were jewels
flashing from her small white hands.
A moment she stood poised at the
upper end of the long room, let
ting him get the full effect Of her en-
trance, fairly taking his breath
away with her loveliness, apprais.
ing him with a delighted glance.
Then. with all the gush of the Alice
of old, only with perhaps a new
touch of artifciality she cried out
joyfully:
"Oh, you dolling! Aren't you per-
fectly stunning!"
Then she rushed forward and be-
fore he had any idea what was COM
ing she had seized his face in both
her slim, smooth hands and kissed
him smartly on his mouth.
He started back from her. It was
too soon, he told himself. She
seemed a stranger. He Stiffened and
met her onslaught almost stolidly.
'Dolling!" she reproached tender
ly, holding him off and looking at
him fondly. He stood warily re-
garding her.
She led him to great deep velvet
chair beside the table with the mir
rored roses.
You're perfectly stunning there,
you know" she declared, and then
she suddenly stopped and kissed
him again, this time on his fore
head just where the hair fell over
the whiteness of the flesh.
He knew he did not like this Ell
ther. Not so soon.
But Alice OWNED his mood. She
sat down quietly, opposite him. sat
so her lovely profile was turned to-
ward him. Sat with a sudden sweet
ness upon her and quiver of her
delicate chin, while she told in
hushed sentences, with downc cast
eyes, of the sorrows that had been
hers since last he saw her. A little
well-trained tear or two stole out
and down her soft cheek like dew
on a rose petal and trembled there.
Sterling sat and watched her, his
heart warming to her. All! This
was the Alice that he had always
dreamed his mother would discover
in his girl some day! And this dear
sorrowing girl had kissed him twice