In Sight of St. Paul's — page 17: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

12 A DANGEROUS BEAUTY. caring very much for this handsome boy who was nearly ten years her junior. It was at Harry’s solicitation, and greatly to his brother Tom’s unspoken disgust, that Mrs. Dell had been invited to this ball to-night. At last the young host’s duties in receiving his guests were over, and he found himself alone with the one who had become all in all to him. He leaned over her as she half-reclined 1n nonchal- ant grace in a low lounging-chair, and drank in her beauty with his whole soul in his eyes. Mrs. Dell looked up at him with a smile. ‘“fAt last, my dear Harry,’’ she murmured, in soft, purring tones. ‘‘At last I can have you to myself for afew moments. Now explain, why scarcely one word all the evening ?”? “Tt has not been my fault, Cynthia,’ replied Harry, piteously. ‘*You know that.”’ She did know it, but she was not going to acknowl- edge it, She shrugged her gleaming shoulders, and a pout appeared upon her scarlet lips. ‘Then she slowly twisted her lissome body toward him, and looked at him from under her half-closed lids with an expres- sion of reproach, which she had found effective upon more occasions than one. Was she serious? Perhaps, She could scarcely have told herself. She had been Ecomicbooks.Gco m