Part 17 (1/2)

”And is n't she rather fond of us?”

”Yes, she is--for the matter of that,” acquiesced Mollie.

”Yes,” began 'Toinette, and then, the sound of footsteps upon the staircase interrupting her, she broke off abruptly to listen. ”It is Phil's visitor,” she said.

Mollie got up from her seat, roused into a lazy sort of interest.

”I am going to look at him,” she said, and went to the window.

The next minute she drew back, blus.h.i.+ng.

”He saw me,” she said. ”I did n't think he could, if I stood here in the corner.”

But he had; and more than that, in his admiration of her dimples and round fire-flushed cheeks, had smiled into her face, openly and without stint, as he pa.s.sed.

After tea Gowan came in. Mollie opened the door for him; and Mollie, in a soft blue dress, and with her hair dressed to a marvel, was a vision to have touched any man's fancy. She was in one of her sweet acquiescent moods, too, having recovered herself since the afternoon; and when she led him into the parlor, she blushed without any reason whatever, as usual, and as a consequence looked enchanting.

”Phil has gone out,” she said. ”'Toinette is putting Tod to bed, and Aimee is helping her; so there is no one here but me.”

Gowan sat down--in Dolly's favorite chair.

”You are quite enough,” he said; ”quite enough--for me.”

She turned away, making a transparent little pretence of requiring a hand-screen from the mantelpiece, and, having got it, she too sat down, and fell to examining a wretched little daub of a picture upon it most minutely.

”This is very badly done,” she observed, irrelevantly. ”Dolly did it, and made it up elaborately into this screen because it was such a sight.

It is just like Dolly, to make fun and joke at her own mistakes. She has n't a particle of talent for drawing. She did this once when Griffith thought he was going to get into something that would bring him money enough to allow of their being married. She made a whole lot of little mats and things to put in their house when they got it, but Griffith did n't get the position, so they had to settle down again.”

”Good Heavens!” e.j.a.c.u.l.a.t.ed Gowan.

”What is the matter?” she asked.

He moved a trifle uneasily in his chair. He had not meant to speak aloud.

”An unintentional outburst, Mollie,” he said. ”A cheerful state of affairs, that.”

”What state of affairs?” she inquired. ”Oh, you mean Dolly's engagement.

Well, of course, it _has_ been a long one; but then, you see, they like each other very much. Aimee was only saying this afternoon that they cared for each other more now than they did at first.”

”Do they?” said Gowan, and for the time being lapsed into silence.

”It's a cross-grained sort of fortune that seems to control us in this world, Mollie,” he said, at length.

Mollie stared at the poor little daub on her hand-screen and met his philosophy indifferently enough.

”_You_ ought n't to say so,” she answered. ”And I don't know anything about it.”

He laughed--quite savagely for so amiable a young man.

”I!” he repeated. ”I ought not to say so, ought n't I? I think I ought.