Free The Challengers by Grace Livingston Hill

where a chain of imitation gold links had lain the night before, their marks not yet washed off.
    "You're not goin' to stand me up, Steve Challenger! You don't mean to say you're going to stand me up? You're not that yellow kind!" She tilted her chin contemptuously. Stephen's face grew red with annoyance. He could not stand being called yellow.
    "I'm not standing you up," he defended himself. "I came down to explain. I tell you, my folks are in trouble. My dad's been sick a long time, and my mother needs me. Some things have come up. She needs me," he finished lamely and then added, "I was sure you would excuse me. It certainly isn't my fault."
    "Well, I won't excuse you," said the girl firmly, looking him straight in the eye. "When I give a date to a fella, I'm used to having it appreciated, and I certainly shall expect you to keep your engagement. There's a midnight train you can take if you have to go tonight. But I should think since your dad's been sick so long he could wait a few hours longer. We're going to that dance tonight, see ? You shouldn't have asked me if you didn't want to. I'm not going to have it said that any fella stood me up, especially any college fella." And she gave him such a look as made the shamed blood roll up into his nice, lean, kindly face.
    He faced her for a moment and then said quietly: "Very well, if you feel that way about it, of course I'll stay, but I'll have to tell you the real reason why I can't go to the dance, even if I do stay. The suit I ordered from the city hasn't come, and I haven't anything else fit to wear. I had an accident and tore my second best suit."
    Stephen had been brought up to tell the truth, but he couldn't somehow bring himself to say he had no money to buy a new one, and it was true in a way that he had ordered one from the city; he didn't have to say that he had found out later the order never went through. But it annoyed him that he was trying to explain himself to this girl. He wanted to stand crystal clear and self-respecting before her, that is, before his ideal of her.
    But the girl's laugh rang out harshly, not at all the silver amusement that she used at college parties where he had seen her before.
    "Oh, well, that's a good one. You know you can borrow a dress suit from any fella. My gracious! Can't you think up a better one than that?"
    Now Stephen did not like to be laughed at. It angered him. He lifted his chin haughtily.
    "I am not accustomed to borrow clothing," he said coldly. "Some fellows may like it, but I don't. However, if you feel that way about it, I can rent a dress suit, of course. I guess Haney's is open yet."
    "Oh, sure," laughed the girl. "Haney's is always open." Then she lifted her voice raucously and called across the neighboring porches, "Oh, I say, Pat, come over here and meet a fella that's too proud to borrow a dress suit."
    "I'm too busy," glowered Pat, beginning to hammer with all his might.
    "I'll call for you at eight thirty," said Steve in a cold, hard voice. He felt as if he had suddenly committed himself to a life of crime.
    "All righty," soothed Sylvia silkily, now she had got her own way with this handsome, reticent youth who had admired her so long without doing anything about it. "But mind you, bring a car for me. I don't like to walk in dancing slippers. Make it a snappy car, please. Barney Blasius will lend you his. I'll call him up and tell him to."
    Stephen whirled upon her.
    "I don't care to borrow anybody's car," he said coldly. "If you don't want to walk--" But he got no further for Sylvia broke in:
    "Oh, then I'll borrow it. He said he'd lend it to me anytime, and he can't take me tonight. He's all tied up in a house party at his old-maid aunt's. You can drive, can't you?"
    "Yes, I can drive," said Stephen desperately. "But I don't want to drive Barney's car. It costs too much money."
    "Oh, money, money, money!" taunted Sylvia prettily. "What's money among friends? I can drive myself if you don't want to."
    "You