"Why, Will! won't you stay to supper? I thought you surely would."
"No," I says, "I've got another friend here it's time to remember—I'll take supper with Arthur Saxton."
Mary looked very confused and bothered. Belknap shot his eyes from her to me and back again, learning all he could from our faces. And in a twinkle I knew that he was the cause, through lies or some kind of devilry, of the coolness between Mary and Arthur Saxton.
The blood went to the top of my head.
"Good-by, Mr. Belknap," I says, "we'll meet again."
"I most certainly hope so," says he, bowing and smiling most polite.
"You keep that hope green, and not let it get away from you like the rest of 'em, and it sure will happen," says I. I turned and looked hard at Mary. "Have you any message for Arthur?" I asked her.
She bit her lips, and glanced at Belknap. "No," says she, short, "I have no message for Mr. Saxton."
"Too bad," says I. "He was a good friend of yours." With that I turned and stalked off. She followed me, and caught me gently by the sleeve.
"You're not angry at me, Will? I'm all alone here, you know."