Availing himself of this permission, Quimby entered, balanced his hat on the edge of an album, and seating himself in a chair, seized a round on either side as if he was in danger of blowing away, and stared at her without a word. "It has been a lovely day, hasn't it?" Nattie said at last, beginning to find the silence embarrassing, and reverting to Mrs. Simonson's safe topic. "Yes--exactly so!" Quimby answered, strengthening his grasp on the chair in a vain endeavor to summon the requisite courage to avail himself of this rare opportunity of pouring out his feelings. Nattie tried him again on another safe topic. "Cyn and I dined together to-day." "I--I can't eat!" burst forth Quimby in accents of despair. "Can't you?" said Nattie, devoutly wishing Cyn would come. "I am very sorry, I hope you are not dyspeptic." "No, no!" he answered, his eyes almost starting from his head between his determination to wind himself up to the point, and the tightness of his grasp on the chair. "It's--it's my heart, you know!" "You don't mean to say you have heart disease?" said Nattie, seeing danger fast approaching, and taking refuge in obtusity. "No; I--I beg pardon--not a--not a bodily heart disease, you know, but a mental one!" and he relaxed his grasp on the chair with one hand to tug at his necktie as if being hung, and disliking the sensation. "That is something I never heard of," Nattie said dryly; then thinking, "I'll drown him in music," she asked hastily, "Do you like the First Kiss?" The bounce of an India rubber ball is no comparison to the agility with which Quimby jumped from his chair at this question. "Oh! Bless my soul! Wouldn't I?" he gasped. "I will play it to you," exclaimed Nattie instantly aware of the indiscretion of her question, and she thundered as loud as she could on the piano, while Quimby, with a very red face, subsided into the chair again. But not long did he remain subsided; whether it was the music that inspired him, or a desperate determination that nerved him, he suddenly sprang up, and with one stride was beside her, exclaiming excitedly, "No! That is--I beg pardon--but please do not play any more just now. There is something I must say to you! Oh! I can't express myself! It all comes upon me with a rush when I am alone, but now, at this supreme moment, I cannot tell you how I a--" "Excuse me, but I am afraid I cannot remain now," hastily interrupted Nattie, feeling that something must be done to stop him, and adopting the first expedient that suggested itself. "I just happened to recollect I left my gas burning in close proximity to the lace curtains, and I must go immediately and attend to it."