For whose sake?: A sequel to "Why did he wed her?"Southworth, Emma Dorothy Eliza Nevitte
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For whose sake?: A sequel to "Why did he wed her?"
Southworth, Emma Dorothy Eliza Nevitte
Bigamy -- Fiction; England -- Fiction; Impostors and imposture -- Fiction
“Then, dear, are you willing that Mrs. Stuart and myself should make all
the arrangements for you?”
“I should be very grateful to you, madam.”
“Look here! I am not going to be left out in the cold!” exclaimed
Augusta Walling, laughing and joining the circle.
“Of course you are not! How should you be, when we are hoping that the
wedding breakfast will be served right here in your house on Saturday
morning next?” said Mrs. Moseley, well knowing that she might take a
much greater liberty than that with her old schoolmate.
“That will be perfectly delightful!” exclaimed Mrs. Walling. “I adore a
wedding breakfast at home, and never expected to enjoy one until my own
daughter, now at Vassar, grows up and gets married. Miss Judith, shall
this be so? Will you place yourself in my hands?”
“Sure and”—brightly exclaimed Judy, and then she stopped suddenly,
blushed and amended her speech—“I should be glad and grateful, ma’am,”
she answered.
Then Mrs. Walling turned to Palma, saying:
“And you will give me back your guest in time? You are rather too young
a matron to chaperon a bride-elect,” she added with a smile.
“As you and my cousins please, dear Mrs. Walling. I should myself be
very happy to serve them, but I will not stand in the way of another who
can do so much better,” replied Palma.
“That’s a dear, unselfish angel!” exclaimed Mrs. Walling. And then the
four women formed themselves into a committee of ways and means, and
discussed wedding breakfasts, trousseaus and so forth, treating Judy
with as much freedom, tenderness and liberality as if she had been their
own child, until the gentlemen came in and the subject was dropped.
The evening passed so pleasantly that it was late when the party broke
up.
Stuart, Palma, Ran and Judy returned to their flat.
Stuart had not been able to find a room for Judy. All the rooms were in
suites. One more night he had to sleep as well as he could on the short
sofa, while Judy shared Palma’s bed.
But the next day, toward the afternoon, Mrs. Walling came for Judy, to
take her to the Walling home to make preparations for her marriage on
Saturday.
“The Moseleys,” she said, “have secured a fine old manor house at Fort
Washington, about fifteen minutes by rail from New York. It is
completely furnished and in perfect readiness for occupation. The family
are in Europe, and the house has been left in the care of an agent, who
has just kept it in perfect order. They leave us to-night; so you see we
have room for a score of young girls, if we could find them.”
Palma made no objection to the departure of Judy, but kissed her an
affectionate good-by; and Mrs. Walling took the girl and the girl’s
little trunk away with her in the luxurious family carriage.
And Ran forsook the Stuarts and spent that evening with the Wallings,
returning quite late to his suite of rooms on their flat. But, under the
circumstances, his cousins forgave him.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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