Part 36 (1/2)
”No! By Jove, are you? I say, I'm glad you mentioned it. I nearly forgot. I'm booked for Mrs. C. too. Rang her up and she asked me to roll up at seven. Can I take you along? Miss Olwen, can't I have tea with you in town somewhere first?”
”Er----” began Olwen, doubtfully. Truth to tell she had not wanted to see very much of little Mr. Brown; she had not wished to encourage his boyish sentimentality for her.
He took up quickly, ”Won't you have tea with me, here, tomorrow? I've got something very particular to say to you, Miss Olwen.”
”Oh? What is it?”
”Give you three guesses. I say, you know that mascot you gave me?”
”Yes?”
”Well! It's brought me luck, I reckon.”
”Oh, has it? Well, what is it?”
”That's what I want to talk about tomorrow,” came with a joyous giggle from the other end of the wires; evidently the speaker could scarcely wait until tomorrow's talk. ”I say, can't you guess, Miss Olwen?
Master's got off, this time.”
”Got _what_?”
”_Off!_”
”I can't quite hear what you say,” called Olwen, puzzled. ”Who has got what?”
”Oh, spare my blushes,” begged the voice of Mr. Brown, and then brought out the announcement, ”I'm engaged to be married, Miss Olwen, that's what!”
”Oh--_oh!_” gasped Olwen. ”I'm so glad----”
”Thanks! Thought you would be! You wait till you hear all about it though. You prepare for a shock, Miss O. Tea tomorrow. Four o'clock.
That suit you? I'll meet you at the door--you know, in the hall just in front of the big place where all the animals feed. Right! So long!
Chin-chin!”
”Good night!” called Olwen, and rang off. Then she stood gazing at the telephone almost as if it were the small figure in khaki coming towards her out of the forest.
Engaged----Little Mr. Brown!
The Charm had worked with him, then, after all?
That made two out of four....
Well, that was a better percentage than she had thought she might hope for, thought Olwen as she turned away.
Did it mean that after all _half_ the people in the world were lucky in love?
CHAPTER VII
PETROL AND THE CHARM