Country homes -- Fiction; Love stories; Man-woman relationships -- Fiction; Young women -- Fiction
"Little one," he went on to Gladys, "will you be a good, brave little
girl and let me carry you? I will put you on this pillow, and I will
be as gentle as possible. I can't promise that it won't hurt you some,
but when you are once home you will be so comfortable."
"All right," assented Gladys, looking up at him with touching
confidence.
But in spite of all their care, it was a very painful ordeal, and the
poor child was quite spent before the manor was reached. As they
mounted the steps of the veranda the doctor's gig drove up to the
door. They carried Gladys up to the nursery, and Farr lingered there
long enough to hear his opinion confirmed that the child had sustained
no further injury than the breaking of her arm.
"I will wait downstairs," he said in an undertone to Jean, and he went
out and closed the door softly behind him.
The moments dragged slowly, and he had almost renounced all hope of
seeing Jean again, when he heard her footfall on the stair. She came
down toward him, her white face showing the traces of tears. He sprang
forward to meet her.
"I can't stay but a moment," she said to him, "for I must go right
back to Gladys. The doctor has set her arm and has given her something
to make her sleep and he is going very soon now."
He laid his hand on her shoulder and looked tenderly down at her.
"You look worn out. Won't you try and rest a little?"
She did not resent his action, but she moved a step away from him and
his hand dropped at his side. Her lips quivered.
"I don't care about myself. I shall never, never forgive myself for my
wicked thoughtlessness. That poor baby's suffering haunts me."
"I won't have you blame yourself," he declared vehemently. "I was more
at fault than you, for I claimed your attention with my stupid story."
"Don't talk nonsense," she returned gently, but, nevertheless, her
face lost much of its misery.
They were silent for a moment. The past hour had broken down the last
barrier of reserve between them and had drawn them very close to each
other. Of the two, Farr was perhaps the more conscious of the subtle
change that had been wrought, and he was filled with unspeakable joy.
"You must go now," Jean told him, "but you will come back to-morrow,
won't you?" She was so sure of his answer that she did not wait for
him to speak. "I don't know how to thank you for all you have done for
Gladys--and me," she added very low.
"If I have been the least help to you, Jean, it is more----" he began,
when the outer door was pushed open, and Nathalie rushed in like a
whirlwind.
"What in the world has happened," she cried excitedly. "Larry says
that Gladys is hurt, but he is too frightened to be clear about it."
Jean hastened to give her an account of the accident, shrinking back a
little from the light that streamed in from the open doorway, for fear
of what her telltale face might reveal to Nathalie's keen eyes. Farr
bade them good-by and went away, and then the two girls went directly
to the nursery.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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