I will be back to-morrow noon, and in the
afternoon I will drive over to Montrose about that deed of the Putnam
house. I know Aunt Ella will be delighted to hear that you are coming."
But he said nothing about his own delight at being the bearer of the
tidings.
When he had gone, Alice sat in her chair as she had many a time before
and thought. As she sat there she realized more strongly than she had
ever done that if Fate was marking out her course for her, it had
certainly chosen as its chief instrument the masterful young man who had
just left her.
The remainder of that day and the morning of the next Alice spent in
dictating to Rosa a crude general outline of Blennerhassett. During the
work she was obliged, naturally, to address Rosa many times, and
uniformly called her Miss Very. Finally Rosa said, "Wouldn't you just as
soon call me Rosa? Miss Very seems so stiff and formal."
"I hope you will not consider me uncompanionable or set in my ways,"
remarked Alice. "We are working, you know, and not playing," she
continued with a sweet smile. "I have no doubt you are worthy of both my
esteem and love, but I have known you less than a day and such things
come slowly with me.
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