Dreams -- Fiction; Fantasy fiction; Man-woman relationships -- Fiction; Science fiction; Short stories; Subconsciousness -- Fiction
"What a business!" Toffee glanced significantly at the line of shapely
legs.
"Get out of here!" Marc glanced furtively at Julie.
"I'll make you a deal," replied Toffee sweetly.
"Anything!"
"If you'll take me to the swankiest night club in town tonight, I'll
leave with, or without, a struggle--however you want it."
"Yes, yes, anything," said Marc quickly. He took her by the arm and led
her past the line of girls. At the door he turned back to Julie.
"Will you select one and dismiss the others?"
"Of course." Julie kept her eyes on the models.
Quickly, she chose one of the girls, gave her the address of the
photographer and sent the others away. After they had gone, she crossed
to the window and stared intently at the city below her. She didn't
move for several minutes. Presently, she turned and left the room.
Julie wasn't the kind for crying.
* * * * *
"Isn't it heavenly," sighed Toffee as she surveyed the smart Spar Club.
Marc's feeling was one of unmixed apprehension as he took into account
the wayward gleam in her eye.
"Judging by the pagan display on the dance floor, I should say that
this is about as unlike heaven as anything could be," he replied sourly.
"Well, anyway, the music is good."
Marc glanced at the orchestra, a disconsolate group of musicians,
wedged uncomfortably into a bandstand that appeared more like a
jeweler's show-case. These men peered malevolently from their perch and
alleviated an obvious resentment for the paying guests by blasting away
at them with their instruments as loudly and unrelatedly as possible.
One young man, with some sort of horn, seemed to be nursing an especial
grudge, for occasionally he would leave his seat, and coming to the
front of the minute platform, set the thing into a squeal that was
nothing short of terrifying.
Marc looked to the people at the tables about theirs, but none of them
seemed at all disturbed by this hysterical performance. He shrugged and
picked up the bottle from the ice bucket. He had never been a drinking
man but he felt that it might help him to understand what was going on.
"Oh, don't we know her?" asked Toffee suddenly.
"Stop pointing--who?"
"The girl just coming in, the one with the white dress and perfectly
haunting man."
Marc turned and looked in the direction Toffee had indicated.
"Why, it's Julie!" he exclaimed.
"Who's that with her?"
"Jack Snell, he's an artist with the agency. I never did like him, but
he's too good a layout man to lose. I wonder what Julie's doing with
him."
"Ask him over," urged Toffee.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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