With that he breaks away from Alex and dives out the door. Alex comes back and sinks down into a chair, wipin' off his fevered brow with a handkerchief. "That baby is a plain nut!" I remarks. "Whew!" pants Alex. "I started somethin' now, that's sure! Still, I don't blame the boy. I felt the same way when Eve claimed she'd wed me, and I guess you did too when Alice went temporarily insane and brung you into the family. If I can keep him keyed up to that pitch to-morrow, he'll land that contract, and I'll land your five thousand!" "He won't land nothin'!" I says. "He's gone nutty now, and you'll be lucky if he shows up at all. This here's _one_ bet I win!" "Yeh?" snaps Alex, gettin' up and reachin' for his hat. "D'ye wanna take five thousand more of it?" "No!" I says. "Good night!" At nine forty-five the next mornin', which is practically the middle of the night for me, Alex comes around and drags me outta bed. He says he's goin' down and watch Jared put the contract over and he wants me along to witness the losin' of my bet. We are in the lobby of the hotel gettin' ready to have Jared paged, when along he comes with some dame he must have kidnapped from the Follies when Ziegfield was busy countin' up the receipts or somethin'. I'll tell the world fair she was _some_ girl. She's lookin' at Jared like he was the eleventh wonder of the world, and he's gazin' back at her like she was the other ten. "Hello!" hollers Alex, grabbin' Jared's hand and makin' believe it's a pump handle. "Congratulations! I wish I felt as happy as both you folks look!" "You couldn't!" says Jared, still with that dazed look on his face. "This is my future wife, gentlemen. We're on our way down for the license now. Come on along as witnesses. We're going to be married right--" "What about that steel contract?" Alex butts in. "Did you get the figures all together last night?" "I did not!" says Jared. "What do I care about a steel contract? I landed a bigger contract than that, and--" "Pardon me," interrupts the girl, with her million-dollar smile. "What is this contract regarding the steel?" Alex tells her the whole dope from start to finish, and when he gets through the girl turns to Jared and says the followin': "Well, dear, I suppose this horrid old business could wait, but just run up and land that contract for a--a--wedding gift for me! It shouldn't take you very long. I'll wait here for you." Oh, boy!!! Talkin' about "just runnin' up and landin'" a million-dollar contract like she was sendin' him for stamps or the like! "All right, honey," says Jared; "I'll be down in five minutes!" They was _fifteen_ minutes partin'.