"But I can tell you what, Miss Swan; you spoke too late, as the man
said when he swallowed the chicken in the fresh egg. Mr. Barker has
a previous engagement. That so, Barker?"
Lemuel turned fire-red, and looked round at Miss Carver, who met his
glance with her clear gaze. She turned presently to make some
comment on Miss Swan's sketch, and then, after working a little
while longer, she said she was tired, and was going to make some
tea.
The girls both pressed Lemuel to stay for a cup, but he would not;
and Berry followed him downstairs to explain and apologise.
"It's all right," said Lemuel. "What difference would it make to
them whether I was engaged or not?"
"Well, I suppose as a general rule a girl would rather a fellow
wasn't," philosophised Berry. He whistled ruefully, and Lemuel
drawing a book toward him in continued silence, he rose from the
seat he had taken on the desk in the little office, and said, "Well,
I guess it'll all come out right. Come to think of it, _I_
don't know anything about your affairs, and I can tell 'em so."
"Oh, it don't matter."
He had pulled the book toward him as if he were going to read, but
he could not read; his head was in a whirl. After a first frenzy of
resentment against Berry, he was now angry at himself for having
been so embarrassed. He thought of a retort that would have passed
it all off lightly; then he reflected again that it was of no
consequence to these young ladies whether he was engaged or not, and
at any rate it was nobody's business but his own.
Pages:
248
249
250
251
252
253
254
255
256
257
258
259
260
261
262
263
264
265
266
267
268
269
270
271
272