He leaned back and laughed.
“It is funny, isn’t it?” she said, “to the carnal mind.”
The laughter abruptly ceased, and he looked keenly at her. But there was no trace of malice in her fair face as she steadily returned the look.
“Has it paid yet?” he asked in a bantering tone.
“Splendidly!” she exclaimed.
“H’m! Well, I’ll wager you won’t get a dollar back on your investment for years.”
“A dollar! No, nor perhaps a penny! We are not measuring our profits in money!”
“And your investment––let’s see,” he mused, trying to draw her out. “You’ve put into this thing a couple of hundred thousand, eh?”
She smiled. “I’ll tell you,” she said, “because money is the only measure you have for estimating the worth of our project. Mr. Hitt has put more than that amount already into the Express.”