CHAPTER VIII
TEMPTATION
“Why comes temptation, but for man to meet
And master and make crouch beneath his foot,
And so be pedestaled in triumph?”
Browning.
Slowly and thoughtfully Carleton ascended the stairs; reached his room; entered it; had even begun, with the mechanical force of habit, to fumble in his pockets for a match—and then, all at once, with a sudden shock of surprise, he awoke from his abstraction. The lamp on the center table was already lighted, though turned low, and from the shadow beyond, a dark figure rose, and came forward to meet him.
In an instant, he had reached out his hand; the next moment, the lamp light flooded the room; and then, as he recognized his visitor, there swept over his face a medley of emotions—amazement, displeasure, perhaps some other feeling as well. For an instant he stood motionless; then, frowning, again stepped forward, pitching his voice little louder than a whisper. “What the devil does this mean, Jeanne?” he asked.
The girl’s lips were smiling; her eyes dancing with suppressed amusement. Plainly enough, she was in nowise disconcerted at her greeting, but instead met his glance with the expression of one who feels herself mistress of the situation. She too stepped forward, until only the width of the table separated them; then spoke, in the same low key, half, it seemed, in real precaution, half in mocking mimicry of his own anxious tone. “Aren’t you glad to see me, Jack?” she whispered. “I thought you’d be so pleased.”
Carleton’s expression did not change, except that his frown deepened, and his mouth grew stern. “What are you thinking of?” he said again, and in the same tone as before. “Coming here! At this time of night! Are you crazy, Jeanne?”
Smiling still, the girl came closer, laying her hand appealingly on his arm, and looking up into his face with the innocent gaze of a child unjustly wronged. “Now, Jack—” she began.
Carleton, with a quick intake of his breath, stepped back, shaking off the slender hand. “Drop it, Jeanne,” he said sharply. “Here—” he thrust the arm-chair toward her, “sit down, and tell me what all this means, and then, for God’s sake, go away!”