The Key West citizen. [volume] (Key West, Fla.) 1879-current, 1937-11-04
Chapter 10
you're Good For Me-

you're Good For Me-
DUT NiDa's reasoning had all
- been too convenient, too easy
.. too brief. The second stage
came on at breakfast.
She had been quite wrong, she
found.
AS she sat slipping her chilled
grapefruit juice, in her new Amer
lean Beauty pajamaS, she thought:
snow I must snap out of this
schoolgirl lapse of mine"
But when her stepfather ap-
peared in black dressing gown
with dragons on it, she thought:
ooh, Lord! / cdn't!"
She loved him, and it couldn't
be helped. But she loved him nice
ly and quietly, and nobody need
ever even suspect it. Instead OF
gnaWing inwardIy at her vitalS,
like a cancer, 1t gave her warm,
glowing feeling inside. Something
to be iiltreaSuredn rather than
ashamed off, yse tsuj. stojd.
This, beatific second stage lasted
all of three days. She had thought
it would last forever. She should
have known better. ---
Nina soon found herself pro-
crossing to the stage where she
wanted to talk about it i. wanted
people to know; and Immediately,
of course, upon the heels of this
hideous discovery, came remorse,
and self-reviling thoughts about
loyalty to her mother.
Nina felt sick all over.
In the Plaza movies, one after
noon, Cordelia had said: 'How are
you and Richard making out, darl-
ing?"
That had been the beginning Of
1t.
Nina had wanted to talk and talk
about him; how marvelously they
got on together; how marvellous he
was to Honey; how mdruelouSly he
fitted into the household.
Cordelia had had to shush her,
because the feature picture had
started. And it was then that Nina
had begun to be afraid.
Oh, To Laugh About It!
CHE went about then, in a paral-
- ysis Of fear lest someone t1ould
suspect it >. Honey :. Richard.
himself.
She dreaded goodnights, and
good mornings, lest he should
touch her, and the warm blood
should come rushing into her
cheeks. She felt that she walked
awkwardly, talked in a peculiar
constrained way when she was
with him, in an effort to appear
normal. Sometimes her lips felt as
though she had been out in cold
wind -. stiff and frozen almost,
when she had to reply to some cas-
ual compliment. 1t was unbear-
able.
And it wasn't only the effort of
trying to hide the signs of her,
well, call it infatuation. It was try
ing to kill the germ at the root
of the infection. And that she
could not seem to do. Il was as
though Richard were launching q
diabolical campaign to win her; to
make her suffer, and hate herself
the more.
One night he said to Carrie Van
Alstyne, right in front of Honey
and Nina: I'm proud Of myself,
Carrie. There aren't many men
who could keep their heads, with
two such beautiful women in the
house"
And Horseface had said, coquet-
tishly: "Are you referring to Hon
ey and me, young fella'9" Honey
/, had giggled.
Oh. to be able to laugh about Ill
I Nina thought with envy of the
girl who had been herself only a
few days ago, lying all uncon-
cerned, between her peach-col-
: ored sheets. figuring it out on her
fingers that she really didn't love
him at all; who had been able to
curl up. and so to sleep after
wards.
And she thought, with loathing.
OF the girl she waS-now; admit
tedly in love with her own moth
er's husband trembling at his
approach -.
She went out with Tom !. and
with every Dick and Harry who
asked her. And she was so nice to
David, when he came back from
his trip and called up, that he app
peared within an hour . . with
Button, and a happy CLEAN in his
eyes.
She was inordinately glad TO
see him. He had interested her
more than any young man in ages
-. before Richard Challoner APP
peared, OF course and she
hoped against hope that his charm
would help bring her back to nor
NAL again.
Not Pull A 'Pish TuSh'e
"uEL~LO, Davidl"
"A Gosh, Nina, I'm glad 10 see
you. It's been weeks, z days. and