The kitten purred his assent and Mary bustled over
the little gas stove humming an old love song her
mother had taught her in a far-off village in Kentucky.




CHAPTER II


TEMPTATION


Her kitchenette was a model of order and cleanliness.
The carpenter who built its neat cupboard and fitted
the drawers beneath the tiny gas range, had outdone
himself in its construction. He had given the wood-
work four coats of immaculate white paint without extra
charge. Mary had insisted on paying for it, but he
waved the proffered money aside with a gesture that
spoke louder than words:

"Pooh! That's nothing to what I'd like to do for
you."

She was not surprised when he called the following
Saturday and stood at her door awkwardly fumbling his
hat, trying to ask her to spend the afternoon and
evening at Coney Island with him. There was no
mistaking the manner in which he made this request.