.

Drew looked at her miserably, bitterly regretting the momentary impulse
to which he had yielded. He knew in his heart that he had been jealous
of the impression that Parmalee, by his easy and graceful narration,
had seemed to be making on Ruth, and he hated himself for it.

"Ruth," he said softly.

She seemed not to have heard him.

"Ruth," he repeated.

"Yes?" she answered, but without looking up.

CHAPTER XVI

GATHERING CLOUDS

"Ruth," Drew pleaded. "Look at me."

She dropped her work then and met his eyes.

"You're angry with me, aren't you?" he asked.

"No; I'm not angry," she replied slowly.

"But you're vexed?" he suggested.

"I should say rather that I am sorry," she answered. "Everything has
been so pleasant between us all up to now, and I hoped it was going to
remain so."

"It was that impulsive tongue of mine," he said. "The words slipped
out before I thought."

"What you said was nothing," she replied. "But the tone in which you
spoke was unpleasant. It seemed as though you were trying to put a
damper on things. It came like a dash of cold water, and I'm sure that
Mr. Parmalee felt chilled by it."

"You seem very much interested in Mr. Parmalee's feelings," he said,
with a return of jealousy at the mention of the other's name.

"No more than I am in those of any of my friends," she answered. "I
think he is very nice, and I was very much interested in what he was
saying," she added, with a tiny touch of malice.

But she repented instantly as she saw the pain in Drew's eyes.

"Let's forget all about it!" she exclaimed. "It was only a trifle,
anyway."

"You forgive me then?" he asked.

"Of course I forgive you, you foolish boy! And to prove it, I'm not
going to make you do any penance," she added gaily.

From that time, a smile from Ruth raised Drew to the seventh heaven,
but when her smile was bestowed on Parmalee, he was dashed to the
depths.

One thing especially was calculated to torture the jealous heart of a
lover. Several times Drew observed Ruth and Parmalee engaged in what
seemed to be a peculiarly confidential talk. Their heads were close
together and their voices low. They seemed to be talking of something
that concerned themselves alone.

The first time he saw them together in this way, he strolled up to
them, but they changed instantly to a lighter and more careless tone,
and introduced a topic in which he could join. But Ruth's face was
flush