"He is a man's man, Beth," I said warmly. "What Ptolemy heard me say was that Rob was a woman-hater." "I am not!" declared Rob indignantly--"just a woman-shyer, but I haven't finished with Ptolemy's confession. I wonder, now, if either of you can guess what he told me was Miss Wade's characteristic." "I don't dare guess," laughed Beth. "What I did say about Beth was that she was a born flirt." "I am not!" protested my sister, in resentment. "I should prefer that appellation to the one he gave you. He said you were strong-minded and a man-hater." Even Beth saw the irony of this. "I asked him," continued Rob, "what his motive was, and he said 'Stepdaddy didn't want Beth to know about the man-hater business,' so he took that means of throwing you off the track. "I took the occasion to talk to him like a Dutch uncle, though I don't know exactly what that is. I think it was the first time anything but brute force had been tried on him. I must have touched some little flicker of the right thing in him, for he was really contrite and seemed to sense a different angle of vision when I explained to him what havoc could be worked by the misinformation of meddlers. He promised me he'd try to overcome his tendency to start things going wrong." I made no comment, but it occurred to me that Ptolemy was a shrewd little fellow, and that there had been wisdom back of his strategic speeches to Beth and Rob, for he had taken the one sure course to make them both "take notice." "So, Beth," said Rob, and her name seemed to come quite handily to him, "can't we cut out the past ten days and begin our acquaintance right?" "I think we can," she answered. "I had better go upstairs," I suggested, "and tell Silvia that Diogenes doesn't need a bath, seeing he has been in swimming." Neither of them urged me to remain, so I went up to our room and found Silvia tucking Diogenes under cover. "What did you come up for?" she asked. "I was just coming down to join you." "Beth is treating Rob so--differently, that I thought it well to retreat." "I am so glad! Whatever came over the spirit of her dreams?" "They've just discovered in the course of conversation that Ptolemy as usual crossed the wires and told Beth Rob was a flirt, and then informed Rob that Beth was strong-minded and a man-hater." "Oh, the little imp!" she exclaimed indignantly. "I don't know. It worked, anyway, so Ptolemy was the bad means to a good end." "How did they ever happen to discover what he had done?" "They caught on from something Rob said," I told her, feeling again guilty at keeping my first secret from her. "It will be a fine match for Beth," said Silvia. "Rob is such a splendid man, and then he has plenty of money. He can give her anything she wants." I winced. I think Silvia must have been conscious of it, even though the room was dark, for she came to me quickly. "I wish I could give you--everything--anything--you want, Silvia."