The Second Honeymoon

The Second Honeymoon, by
Ruby M. Ayres

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Ayres
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Title: The Second Honeymoon
Author: Ruby M. Ayres

Release Date: January 2, 2006 [eBook #17446]
Language: English
Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1
***START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE
SECOND HONEYMOON***
E-text prepared by Al Haines

THE SECOND HONEYMOON

by
RUBY M. AYRES
Author of A Bachelor Husband, The Scar, Etc.

New York Grosset & Dunlap Publishers Made in the United States of
America Copyright, 1921, by W. J. Watt & Company

CONTENTS
CHAPTER
I
THE PAST INTERVENES II JILTED! III THE TWO WOMEN IV
JIMMY GETS NEWS V SANGSTER TAKES A HAND VI JIMMY
DEMANDS THE TRUTH VII LOVE AND POVERTY VIII THE
SECOND ENGAGEMENT IX MOTHERLESS X JIMMY HAS A
VISITOR XI HUSBAND AND WIFE XII SANGSTER IS
CONSULTED XIII CHRISTINE HEARS THE TRUTH XIV
BITTERNESS XV SANGSTER SPEAKS IN RIDDLES XVI THE
PAST RETURNS XVII JIMMY BREAKS OUT XVIII KETTERING
HEARS SOMETHING XIX A CHANCE MEETING XX LOVE
LOCKED OUT XXI THE COMPACT XXII TOO LATE! XXIII THE
UNEXPECTED

THE SECOND HONEYMOON
CHAPTER I
THE PAST INTERVENES
James Challoner, known to his friends and intimates as Jimmy, brushed

an imaginary speck of dust from the shoulder of his dinner jacket, and
momentarily stopped his cheery whistling to stare at himself in the
glass with critical eyes.
Jimmy was feeling very pleased with himself in particular and the
world in general. He was young, and quite passably good-looking, he
had backed a couple of winners that day for a nice little sum, and he
was engaged to a woman with whom he had been desperately in love
for at least three months.
Three months was a long time for Jimmy Challoner to be in love (as a
rule, three days was the outside limit which he allowed himself), but
this--well, this was the real thing at last--the real, romantic thing of
which author chaps and playwright Johnnies wrote; the thing which
sweeps a man clean off his feet and paints the world with rainbow tints.
Jimmy Challoner was sure of it. His usually merry eyes sobered a little
as he met their solemn reflection in the mirror. He took up a
silver-backed brush and carefully smoothed down a kink of hair which
stood aggressively erect above the rest. It was a confounded nuisance,
that obstinate wave in his hair, making him look like a poet or a
drawing-room actor.
Not that he objected to actors and the stage in the very least; on the
contrary, he had the profoundest admiration for them, at which one
could hardly wonder seeing that Cynthia--bless her heart!--was at
present playing lead in one of the suburban theatres, and that at that
very moment a pass for the stage box reposed happily in an inner
pocket of his coat.
Cynthia was fast making a name for herself. In his adoring eyes she
was perfect, and in his blissful heart he was confident that one day all
London would be talking about her. Her photographs would be In every
shop window, and people would stand all day outside the pit and
gallery to cheer her on first nights.
When he voiced these sentiments to Cynthia herself, she only laughed
and called him a "silly boy"; but he knew that she was pleased to hear

them all the same.
Jimmy Challoner gave a last look at his immaculate figure, took up his
coat and gloves and went out.
He called a taxi and gave the address of the suburban theatre before he
climbed in out of the chilly night and sat back in a corner.
Jimmy Challoner was quite young, and very much in love; so much in
love that as yet he had not penetrated the rouge and grease-paint of life
and discovered the very ordinary material that lies beneath it. The glare
of the footlights still blinded him. Like a child who is taken for the first
time to a pantomime, he did not realise that their brilliance is there in
order to hide imperfections.
He was so perfectly happy that he paid the driver double fare when he
reached the theatre. An attentive porter hurried forward.
Just at the moment Jimmy Challoner was very well known in that
particular neighbourhood; he was generous with his tips for one thing,
and for another he had a cheery personality which went down with
most people.
He went round to the stage door as if he were perfectly at home