"It's afternoon, for one item," says I. "And say, why not ditch that juvenile hail? Torchy, Torchy! Seems to me I ought to be mistered to-day. Someone ought to do it, anyway." "Why to-day any more than yesterday?" asks Vee. I waits until the dinin'-room steward has faded, and then I remarks haughty: "Maybe it ain't come to you that I'm a near-plute now." "Pooh!" says Vee. "You're not a bit richer than I am." "Boy, page the auditin' committee!" says I. "How strong do you tally up?" "I'm sure I don't know," says she. "Neither do you, Mister Torchy." "Oh, yes, I do," says I. "I've got just the same as you." Vee runs out the tip of her tongue at me. "That's the sort of disposition," says she, "which goes with red hair." "Towhead yourself!" says I. "What kind of a scramble has the cook got on the eggs to-day?" "You'd better order soft-boiled," says Vee. "I'll open them for you." "Will you?" says I. "Just this once, or does that stand?" "This--this is so abrupt!" says Vee, snickerin'. "You tell it well," says I. "Just as though I hadn't been doin' my best to dodge the net! But what chance has a man got when he's cornered at breakfast and she offers to-- Ouch!" Vee springs one of them boardin'-school tricks of hers, shootin' a teaspoonful of water accurate across the table. "Rough-houser!" says I, moppin' my eye with the napkin. "If your Auntie can't train you, maybe she'll let me try." "Oh, no doubt she would," says Vee. "I might ask her," I suggests. "I'd love to be around when you did," says she, rollin' her eyes impish. "Meanin' I wouldn't dare, eh?" says I. Vee only dabbles her pink finger-ends in the little glass bowl, and chuckles like she was rememberin' something funny. "Suppose I did and got away with it?" I asks. Vee gives me a quizzin' glance from them gray eyes, one of the kind that sort of warms me up under my vest. "I couldn't decorate you with the Victoria Cross," says she. "But would you take a chance on the results?" I asks. "One of the silly things I've learned from you," says Vee, lowerin' her eyelids fetchin', "is to--to take a chance." "Vee!" says I, startin' to dash around the table. "Hush!" says she, wavin' me hack. "Here come your eggs." Say, what went on durin' the rest of the day I couldn't tell. I expect it was a good deal the same kind of an afternoon we'd been havin' right along, but to me it was three X double A with the band playin'. I was light in the head and I had springs in my heels. Everything and everybody looked good to me.