“I know nothing of the kind! I’ll let him know at the proper time and place what I think of him.”
“Well, of course, Evelyn,” said Atwood with his odd little pipe of a laugh. But he was very earnest; he brought Cummings to his side by an imperious gesture. As the man for the hour he was not acquitting himself so badly; he looked at Grace for her approval, wasn’t sure that she gave it, but with his hand resting on Cummings’s shoulder, he spoke directly to the point.
“I’m awfully sorry about this, Bob. You know I’m in and out of your house a lot and you never seem to mind. And tonight I tried to get you on the telephone to see if we could do something, the three of us I mean,—run down to see a picture or any old thing—and the maid said you were at Colonel Felton’s; both of you, I thought she meant. And I called up there about the time I thought the party would be over and found you weren’t there and asked Evelyn to let me come for her. And I thought it would be good fun to take a little dash through the storm and I knew you wouldn’t care. There couldn’t be any harm in that; we’ve all been out here together lots of times.”
“Why, that’s perfectly all right, Jimmie!” exclaimed Cummings with a flourish of magnanimity which did not, however, awaken the grateful response he may have expected from Evelyn, who had murmured an indifferent, “Thank you, Jimmie,” when Atwood concluded.
“There’s nothing tragic about this,” Cummings began a little defiantly. “Miss Durland and I have known each other all our lives. She’s an old friend. She came out with me just as a lark; just as you and Jimmie came. I don’t want you to think——”
“That will do!” said Evelyn rising so suddenly that Cummings backed away from her in alarm. “Anything you have to say to me needn’t be said before this old friend of yours.”
“But, Evelyn, you’re not fair!” cried Cummings hotly. “It isn’t fair to Miss Durland. The whole fault of her being out here is mine. I’ll not have you think——”
“You’re terribly anxious about what I think!” Evelyn interrupted. “I’ll think what I please!”
Grace, on her way to the sofa on which she had left her coat and hat, swung round, her face aflame.
“It may not occur to you, Mrs. Cummings, that what you think isn’t of the slightest importance.”