all, and that Lamb was lying
sprawled wide open on the floor, his face relaxed from its anxious
determination.

"I got his think-works going--he'll do the rest," he told himself
satisfiedly, and pushed the subject from him. Just now he wanted to
make sure the Pilgrim wasn't getting more smiles than were coming to
him--and if you had left the decision of that with Billy, the Pilgrim
would have had none at all.

"I wisht he'd _do_ something I could lay my finger on--damn him," he
reflected. "I can't kick him out on the strength uh my own private
opinion. I'd just simply lay myself wide open to all kinds uh
remarks. I _ain't_ jealous; he ain't got any particular stand-in with
Flora--but if I started action on him, that's what the general verdict
would be. Oh, thunder!"

Nothing of his thoughts showed in his manner when he went out to where
they were. He found them just putting up a target made of a sheet of
tablet paper marked with a lead pencil into rings and an uncertain
centre, and he went straight into the game with a smile. He loaded
the gun for Flora, showed her exactly how to "draw a fine bead," and
otherwise deported himself in a way not calculated to be pleasing to
the Pilgrim. He called her Flora boldly whenever occasion offered, and
he exulted inwardly at the proprietary way in which she said "Billy
Boy" and ordered him around. Of course, _he_ knew quite well that
there was nothing but frank-eyed friendship back of it all; but the
Pilgrim plainly did not know and was a good deal inclined to sulk over
his interpretation.

So Billy, when came the time for sleeping, grinned in the dark of his
room and dwelt with much satisfaction upon the manner of the Pilgrim's
departure. He prophesied optimistically that he guessed that would
hold the Pilgrim for a while, and that he himself could go on round-up
and not worry any over what was happening at the ranch.

For the Pilgrim had come into the kitchen, ostensibly for a drink of
water, and had found Miss Flora fussily adjusting the Klondyke nugget
pin in the tie of Charming Billy, as is the way of women when they
know they may bully a man with impunity--and she was saying: "Now,
Billy Boy, if you don't learn to stick that pin in straight and not
have the point standing out a foot, I'll--" That is where the Pilgrim
came in and interrupted. And he choked over the dipper of water even
as Billy choked over his glee, and left the ranch within fifteen
minutes and rode, as