Page:The beautiful and damned.djvu/165

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THE RADIANT HOUR
151

seemed absurd that from now on he would pay for all her meals. It was going to cost: he wondered if he had not underestimated for this trip, and if he had not better cash a larger check. The question worried him.

Then the breathless impendency of the event swept his mind clear of details. This was the day—unsought, unsuspected six months before, but now breaking in yellow light through his east window, dancing along the carpet as though the sun were smiling at some ancient and reiterated gag of his own.

Anthony laughed in a nervous one-syllable snort.

"By God!" he muttered to himself, "I'm as good as married!"

The Ushers

Six young men in Cross Patch's library growing more and more cheery under the influence of Mumm's Extra Dry, set surreptitiously in cold pails by the bookcases.

The First Young Man: By golly! Believe me, in my next book I'm going to do a wedding scene that'll knock 'em cold!

The Second Young Man: Met a debutante th'other day said she thought your book was powerful. As a rule young girls cry for this primitive business.

The Third Young Man: Where's Anthony?

The Fourth Young Man: Walking up and down outside talking to himself.

Second Young Man: Lord! Did you see the minister? Most peculiar looking teeth.

Fifth Young Man: Think they're natural. Funny thing people having gold teeth.

Sixth Young Man: They say they love 'em. My dentist told me once a woman came to him and insisted on having two of her teeth covered with gold. No reason at all. All right the way they were.