"But yes," says Madame Maurice. "It is her hour for luncheon. I will see." With that she calls up an assistant, shoos me into a back parlor86 and asks me to wait a moment, leavin' Crosby out front with his mouth open. 86 And two minutes later in breezes the Madame leadin' Mame Stribble by the arm. The lady boss seems somewhat peeved, too. "Tell me," she demands, "is this the street dress which you observed in the window?" "That's the very one," says I. "Hah!" says she. "Then perhaps Marie will explain to me later. For the present, M'sieur, I leave you." "Sorry if I've put you in bad, Miss Stribble," says I, as the Madame sweeps out. "Oh, that's all right," says Mame, tossin' her chin. "She'll get over it. And, anyway, I was takin' a chance." "So I noticed," says I. "What was the big idea, though?" "Just sizin' up the people who pass by," says Mame. "It's grand sport havin' 'em stretch their necks at you and thinkin' you're just a dummy. I got onto it one day while I was changin' a model. Course, it cuts into my lunch time, and I have to sneak a dress out of stock, but it's kind of fun." "'Specially when you've got one particular young gent coming to watch regular, eh?" I suggests. That seems to give her sort of a jolt and for a second she stares at me, bitin' her upper lip. "Who do you mean, now?" she asks.87 87 "He has a chin dimple and his name's Crosby Rhodes," says I. "You've put the spell on him for fair, too. He's out front, waiting to meet you." "Oh, is he?" says Mame, lettin' on not to care. "And yet when he was livin' in one of our apartments he passed me every day without seein' me at all." "Oh, ho!" says I. "You took notice of him, though, did you?" Miss Stribble pinks up at that. "Yes, I did," says she. "He struck me as a reg'lar feller, one of the kind you could tie to. And when he'd almost step over me without noticin'—well, I'll admit that sort of hurt. I expect that's why I made up my mind to shake the mop and pail outfit and break in some place where I could pick up a few tricks. After a few stabs I landed here at the Maison. I
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