“No.... Oh Billy you’re still the same old tease.... Dont tease me this afternoon. I dont feel up to it.”
“You poor dear sit down and have a cup of tea with me.
“I tell you Ruth it’s a terrible year. Many a good trouper will pawn the last link of his watch chain this year.... I suppose you’re going the rounds.”
“Dont talk about it.... If I could only get my throat all right.... A thing like that wears you down.”
“Remember the old days at the Somerville Stock?”
“Billy could I ever forget them?... Wasnt it a scream?”
“The last time I saw you Ruth was in The Butterfly on the Wheel in Seattle. I was out front....”
“Why didn’t you come back and see me?”
“I was still angry at you I suppose.... It was my lowest moment. In the valley of shadow ... melancholia ... neurasthenia. I was stranded penniless.... That night I was a little under the influence, you understand. I didn’t want you to see the beast in me.”
Ruth poured herself a fresh cup of tea. She suddenly felt feverishly gay. “Oh but Billy havent you forgotten all that?... I was a foolish little girl then.... I was afraid that love or marriage or anything like that would interfere