Miss Million's Maid: A Romance of Love and Fortune — John Stuart Mill — John Shaqi
Miss Million's Maid: A Romance of Love and Fortune
John Stuart Mill · en
I said: "Yes, Million. I'm coming to you if you'll have me."
"Ow! That's the style, Miss----"
"If I come, you won't have to call me 'Miss' any more," I said firmly.
"That'll be part of it."
"Part of what?" asked Million, bewildered.
"Part of the arrangement I want to make with you," I said. And then,
looking up, I beheld curiosity written in every line of the back of that
woman at the writing-table. I said: "Million, I can't talk to you here.
Get your hat on and come out. We'll discuss this in the Park."
And in the Park, sitting side by side on two green wooden chairs, I
unfolded to Million my suddenly conceived plan.
"Now, listen," I began. "You're a rich girl--a young woman with a big
fortune of her own----"
"Oh, Miss, I don't seem to realise it one bit, yet----"
"You'll have to realise it. You'll have to begin and adapt yourself to
it all, quite soon. And the sooner you begin the sooner you'll feel at
home in it all."
"I don't feel as if I'd got a home, now," said Million, with the forlorn
look coming over her face. "I don't feel as if I should ever make
anything out of it--of this here being an heiress, I mean."
"Million, you'll have to 'make something of it'. Other people do. People
who haven't been brought up to riches. It may not 'come natural' to
them, at first. But they learn. They learn to live as if they'd always
been accustomed to beautiful clothes, and to having houses, and cars,
and all that sort of thing, galore. Million, these are the things you've
got to acquire now you're rich," I said quite threateningly. "Even your
dear old lawyer knew that this Kensington place was only '_pro tem_'.
You'll have to have an establishment, to settle where you'll live, and
what you want to do with yourself."
"I don't want to do nothing, Miss Beatrice," said little Million
helplessly.
"Don't talk nonsense. You know you told me yourself quite lately," I
reminded her, "that you had one great wish."
Million's troubled little face lifted for a moment into a smile, but she
shook her head (in that awful crimsony straw hat that she will wear "for
best").
"You do remember that wish," I said. "You told me that you would so like
to marry a gentleman. Well, now, here you will have every chance of
meeting and marrying one!"
"Oh, Miss! But I'm reely--reely not the kind of girl that----"
"So you'll have to set to and make yourself into the kind of girl that
the kind of 'gentleman' you'd like would be wild to marry. You'll have
to----Well, to begin with," I said impressively, "you'll have to get a
very good maid."
"Do you mean a girl to do the work about the house, Miss?"
"No, I don't. You'll have a whole staff of people to do that for you," I
explained patiently. "I mean a personal maid, a lady's-maid. A person to
do your hair and to marcel-wave, and to manicure, and to massage you! A
person to take care of your beautiful clo----"
"Haven't got any beautiful clothes, Miss."