I going to have as many dreadful things happen to me to-night as I
was going to have when I met Mr. Corbett and Mr. Benjamin David and Mr.
Height and the other theatrical people? Am I being warned again?" Mr.
Vandeford accepted the teasing and laughed at himself.

"My wings are up. Go out and scratch for yourself."

"Not very far, though," Miss Adair answered. Mr. Vandeford was not sure
that she moved a fraction of an inch nearer to him, but he hoped so. "I
feel just the same about you as I do about Roger and I like to be going
with you--into--into danger."

"Who's Roger?" questioned Mr. Vandeford.

"He's my brother, who treats me as you do. It's fun for a woman to be
frightened dreadfully when she is with a man she likes." Again there was
that uncertainty as to whether Miss Adair fluttered a fraction of an
inch in his direction, and for the life of him Mr. Vandeford could not
say whence had flown all the many ways he would have commanded
ordinarily for the finding out if such were the case.

"A frightened woman is often rather--rather deadly to a man," he
answered before he could stop himself. The habit of speaking out
directly to Miss Adair was growing on him, he perceived, and it alarmed
him.

"Into what danger are you taking me now?" asked Miss Adair with a fluty,
merry laugh.

"We are going with Mr. Farraday and Miss Hawtry to see the Big Show and
to the Grove Garden on the roof afterward for supper. Just a slow, usual
sort of an evening, but Denny thought it would be fun for you to see
the Big Show and the Big Feed and the Big Dance by way of initiation,"
Mr. Vandeford answered, with an entire lack of enthusiasm.

"I wanted to see what you wanted me to see this first night," Miss Adair
said with the affectionate frankness of six years going on seven. "What
would that be?"

"We'll see it to-morrow night," Mr. Vandeford answered her, and this
time the tenderness in his voice surprised him and he considered it
entirely unjustifiable.

"Mr. Height was going to take me to see Maude Adams, but I know he'll
put it off again when I tell him that you want me to--"

"No, don't! Let Height get Maude Adams out of his system, for Heaven's
sake," snapped Mr. Vandeford, this time in unjustifiable temper.

"Why, what is--" Miss Adair was asking of Mr. Vandeford in positive
alarm when Valentine stopped before the blazing doorway of the Big Show.
A functionary seven feet tall opened the door of the car and all but
l