She turned a smiling face toward him, cheeks rosy with the air, keen
and crisp, of the winter day, and drew the shabby fur tighter round her
throat as the car backed slowly out of the narrow road.
"Where are we going?"
"That's for you to decide. But I think through Hampstead, now we've
come this way. Sure you're warm enough? I put in my other coat--so
burrow into that if the wind gets keen."
He turned the car up the long hilly road leading to Swiss Cottage and
leaned back easily.
"How's school going?" He smiled at her with pride. She looked so
pretty with her childish, flushed cheeks.
"College, d'you mean?" Jill corrected him. "Nothing exciting since the
row over ancient history. I'm working rather hard for the Exams now."
"I don't think you told me that. Let's hear about it."
"Well, it's rather a long story----" she settled herself back with her
cold hands thrust beneath the fur rug. "So if you get bored, please
say so at once."
"Fire away," McTaggart observed.
"You remember that unholy fuss last Boat Race day? When I and the
other Cambridge girls held the Bun Shop against Oxford?"
"No--not exactly. What Bun Shop?"
McTaggart saw fun ahead, for Jill's gray eyes were full of mischief
beneath their dark lashes. He noticed, for the first time, how long
and thick they were, curling back in a rippling line that cast a faint
shadow when she lowered the lids.
"Oh, the Bun Shop is a little room in the basement of the college where
old Mother Griggs sells all sorts of cakes, sticks of chocolate and hot
coffee--for 'Elevens' or lunch, you know. It's at the end of a long
passage, quite by itself, with just a counter across it and a dim
religious sort of light from a top-window into the area. There Mother
Griggs sits and barters--rather like a grim old idol--and in between
she grumbles and knits socks. She must have knitted hundreds by now!
Well, on boat race day we all wear colors--I'm Cambridge, of course,
because Uncle was at King's. And some Oxford girl had a wonderful
cousin who was rowing in the boat. So she simply 'swanked,' you know,
and swore Oxford was sure to win. The end of it was _we_ got riled.
So we formed up into the Bun Shop--all of us Cambridge girls--and we
held the place against Oxford right through the mid-day hour---- We
wouldn't let a single Dark Blue pass. It _was_ fun!--a gorgeous
scrimmage. Until some sneak went up and told, and down came the
Principal. As luck would have it, she fell on me. So I got put in the
Black Book."
She paused for breath as they crossed FitzJohn's Parade and started on
the steep climb to Hampstead.
McTaggart glanced at her and laughed.
"What does that mean?" he inquired.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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