"Do you?" I retorted.
"Want to make a bet?" he asked.
"I never bet on a certainty," said I.
Courtney laughed. "Neither do I, so here's the wager:—a dinner for twenty that you and I are in Valeria thirty days from to-night and have dined with the King and danced with the Princess."
"Done!" said I.
"All I stipulate is that you do nothing to avoid King Frederick's invitation."
"And the Princess?" I asked.
"I'm counting on her to win me the bet," he laughed.
I picked up the picture and studied it again. The longer I looked the more willing I was to give Courtney a chance to eat my dinner.
"If the opportunity comes I'll dance with her," I said.