Part 13 (2/2)

”Often they didn't want to at first But they always joined in toward the end, and the gloomiest of them went aith a sh,” said Joe Barnes bitterly He had left the picture of his illustrious ancestor and had dropped down in his old position on the edge of the table, leg swinging idly But his expression had changed It was gri at him, suddenly remembered, and she could see by the expressions on the faces of her chums that they also had awakened to the situation

With horrible lack of tact, they had offended their kind host and hostess That they had not done so deliberately, helped their self-condes, they had spoken of their work at the Hostess House and of the soldier boys, while Joe Barnes, of ly in perfect health, did not wear a uniforh he were a slacker, it was terribly bad taste to tell hi his, or hisdeep down in their hearts, intuition, perhaps, perhaps a sort of sixth sense born of their wide experience of boys of all ages, told them that he was not a slacker There must be some reason, so some more?” asked their hostess in an attempt to relieve the situation, while she kept one eye anxiously on her son ”Surely you haven't finished”

”I'h, ”for the very good reason that we don't know any ”

”And ant to hear so her lead ”That is, if you are not tired”

”Oh, no, , with a little entreating glance at her son: ”Will you put on another record, dear--soht and merry this time?”

”How about some dance music?” queried Joe pleasantly He was very much ashamed of his weakness and ill temper, and was deterhtest and erly, and in a few otten--or apparently forgotten At least, for the tiround, and it was not till some time later that Joe unexpectedly broached it to Betty

The drenching downpour had changed to a sort of dis this fact had ain and try to ton But Mrs Barnes had so proatived this that there was really no rooument

”Why, even with dry roads it would take you two hours or et there, for at all titon, but such a thing is simply out of the question with roads that are two feet deep in ht I have plenty of roohted to have you No, please don't object, for I will not hear of your doing otherwise”

And so it had been settled, much to everybody's satisfaction

However, Betty was very much surprised when, in the midst of a beautiful dance with Joe Barnes--for Joe was a rather wonderful dancer--the latter whirled her off toward aseat in one corner of the room and placed her, a little breathless, upon it

”Well,” she said, that unconquerable i in her eyes, ”have you any adequate excuse to offer for the spoiling of an exceptionally good dance?”

”Is it spoiled?” he asked reproachfully, as he sank down beside her ”I thought perhaps I was i--the occasion”

Sheall her dimples

”I suppose, if I were a coquette,” she said, flushi+ng a little under the very open admiration of his eyes, ”which I am not--”

”I'm not so sure,” he murmured but she pretended not to hear the interruption

”I should deny that you had spoiled the dance As it is,” she flashed hi, ”I' you the truth”

”And I,” he countered, ”a you the truth when I say that if it were possible to talk with you and dance at the saht you here As it is, I choose the greater of the two blessings”

”It must be very important--this that you have to say todemurely: ”Perhaps if you would tell ain”

”In other words, 'get the agony over',” said Joe, with a griirls, who had danced to the end of the record, turned it over, put in a new needle and started off all over again