A Man's Hearth Part 16

"You see, he isn't my man," he excused himself from compliance. "Thank you very much, but it is not possible."

"Then let him wait for you. Really, Tony, I think you owe me a little courtesy."

Adriance flushed before the rebuke. He never had seen Lucille Masterson since that rough farewell of their final quarrel. He had left her, to marry another woman inside of the next thirty-six hours. He always had been at his weakest with Mrs. Masterson; he slipped now into his old mistake of temporizing.

"I am not dressed for a tea-room," he deprecated. "Otherwise, I should be delighted."

Her eyes glinted. Grasping the slight concession, she leaned toward Adriance's a.s.sistant with her brilliant, arrogant smile.

"You will watch the car for Mr. Adriance, just a few moments, will you not?" she appealed. "I have something of importance to say to him. I should be much obliged."

The white-gloved hand slipped forward and left a bank note in the hairy fist. Dazed, Mike vaguely jerked his cap in salute, still staring at the woman. Neither money nor beauty might have lured him to an actual breach of duty, but this was the last trip of the day and the truck was empty.

It could not matter if the return were delayed half an hour; a belated ferryboat might lose so much time. Moreover, he was not only willing, but anxious, to do Andy a favor, and the bill in his clutch a.s.sured a glorious Sat.u.r.day night.

"Sure," he mumbled, with a grin of shyness like a colossal child's.

"Come, Tony," directed Mrs. Masterson.

Because he saw nothing else to do, Tony reluctantly swung himself down to the pavement beside her.

"I can only stay for a word," he essayed revolt. "It is hardly worth while to go anywhere. We should have to go find some place where these clothes would pa.s.s and where no one knew us."

"On the contrary! We must go where you are so well-known that your dress does not matter," she contradicted him. "The Elizabeth Tea-room is just here, and we used to go there often."

He could think of no objection to the proposal. Presently he found himself following his captor into the pretty, yellow-and-white tea-room.

As the Elizabeth affected an English atmosphere and had not adopted the _the dansant_, the place was not overfull. The quaintly-gowned waitress greeted them with a murmur of recognition and led the way to a table without a glance at the chauffeur's attire. Mrs. Masterson ordered something; an order which Adriance seconded without having heard it. He was recovering his poise, and marvelling at himself for coming here no less than at Lucille for bringing him. What could they have to say to each other, now? The scented warmth of the room brought to his realization the cold in which he had left Mike to wait, and he was nipped by remorse.

It was a consequence of his education among people who never considered that narrowness of convention which they designated as middle-cla.s.s, that Adriance had no sense of disloyalty either to Elsie or Fred Masterson in being here. On the contrary, the knowledge of his marriage would have enabled him to welcome frankly either of the two had they chanced to enter and find him. It was as if his a.s.sured position chaperoned the situation. But, truly masculine, since he no longer loved Lucille Masterson he detested being with her. He resented the acute discomfort he felt in her presence.

She was drawing off her gloves with a slowness that irritated him as an affectation; he thought the artificial perfection of her hands hideous as a waxwork. They were not really a good shape, nor small, but merely blanched very white and manicured to a glistening illusion. And he saw with disgust that she wore a ring he once had given her because she made it plain to him that the costly gift was expected. He knew she had lied to her husband as to the giver; "Tony" had been startled and half-awakened from his hazy content by that discovery at the time. Now he looked at the bulky pearl set around with diamonds and recalled the modest garnets he had given Elsie.

"I am sorry, but I haven't long to stay," he said. "You spoke of something important to discuss."

"Did I?"

"Certainly!"

She studied him with open curiosity.

"You want to go back to that wagon with the gorilla of a man?"

"Yes."

"Are you still very much married, Tony?" she questioned maliciously.

His eyes blazed, then chilled. Her lack of finesse had led her to a final mistake.

"You forget that my wife is an unfashionable woman. I am still happily married," he retorted.

"How--romantic!"

"Very."

"Still, two months, or is it three? Even Fred and I lasted that long.

You will not mind my saying that you are a bit fickle, Tony. What will you do when you grow bored? Or do you believe that you never will? Elsie must have resources that I never suspected. Does she tell you the story of--Monsieur Raoul, was it?"

"She has others more pleasant. With Mrs. Adriance boredom is not possible," he controlled his anger to state. But he felt himself clumsy and inadequate.

The quaint little waitress was beside him, and proceeded to her duty of service with exasperating slowness and precision. She was a pretty girl, in a b.u.t.ter-cup-yellow frock and ruffled white cap and ap.r.o.n. Adriance became conscious of his work-darkened hands, of a collar that showed a day's acc.u.mulated dust, and other signs that differentiated him from the usual idle and dainty patrons of this place.

"You _are_ a bit seedy," corroborated Mrs. Masterson, watching him with furtive acuteness. She permitted herself an ironic smile. "Do you not think it time you went home, and changed?"

He divined an innuendo, a _double entendre_ in the speech that he did not comprehend, yet which enraged him. He wondered if she had brought him here for the purpose of forcing this contrast between his present life and his past, and so tainting him with discontent or even regret of his marriage. If so, she had failed. He merely visited his humiliation on her, and found her beauty spoiled by her spitefulness.

"I shall be home in an hour," he said. "And of course I am anxious to be there, so you will forgive my reminding you of whatever we have to discuss."

"Oh, of course." She paused until their attendant fluttered away through a swinging door. "You are quite cured of me, aren't you, Tony? Don't trouble about denying politely, please. But it is lucky no one really knew about us--I suppose you have not told?"

"Mrs. Masterson!"

She hushed the protest, laughing across the spray of sweet-peas she had lifted against her smooth red lips.

"Very well, very well! But promise you never will. Promise, Tony."

"It is not necessary," he replied stiffly. "But if you think it so, I give you my word."

"Never to tell that I thought of marrying you, whatever may happen?"

"Yes."

She dropped the sweet-peas and sat in silence for a s.p.a.ce, her gaze dwelling on him. Neither of the two made any pretense of pouring the tea cooling in the diminutive pots between them, or of tasting the miniature sandwiches and cakes. Months later, Adriance was to learn something of Lucille Masterson's thoughts during that interval. He himself thought of Russian Mike waiting in the motor-truck, and that he would be so late home that Elsie might be worried. He had wanted to stop at a shop to buy a toy bull-dog collar for his Christmas puppy, but now that must be postponed. He was amazed and infinitely angry at himself for yielding so easily to Lucille's whim to bring him here.

Unconsciously he looked toward her with open impatience in his glance.

She responded at once, with a shrug.

"Go, by all means. Pray go, Tony. Am I keeping you? I am not the kind of woman who mourns, you know. Just remember that our episode is not only closed, but locked, when we meet again. Good-bye."

"And the important communication that I was to hear?"

"I have forgotten what I wanted to say. Good-bye, Tony."

Puzzled and angry, he rose, leaving on the table twice the amount of the check, at which he had not looked. Mrs. Masterson nodded an acknowledgment of his grim salute. Her eyes had a look of triumph, and as the girl in yellow ushered him out, Adriance saw the other turn with appet.i.te to the sandwiches and tea.

The east wind had grown stronger and its current was thick with whirling particles of snow. Darkness had come with the storm, turning dusk into night. Adriance shivered and b.u.t.toned his cheap fur coat as he hurried across the wet, shining pavement. Mike aroused himself with a grunt when the chauffeur swung up into the seat beside him.

"Swell dame, Andy!" he commented, staring with heavy curiosity at the man pushing throttle and spark. "I guess maybe you're a swell, too, like a movie show I seen once?"

Adriance stepped down again, to go forward and crank the motor. He began to glimpse the possible complications if Mike recounted this adventure among his mates. He wondered, also, if Lucille had noticed the name on the truck. Altogether, he was in a vicious enough mood to lie, and he did so.