Nobody Part 121

But that set Lois to laughing, a little nervously no doubt, yet so merrily that Philip could not but join in.

"Do I not owe everything to you?" he went on presently, with tender seriousness. "You first set me upon thinking. Do you recollect your earliest talk to me here in this room once, a good while ago, about being _satisfied?_"

"Yes," said Lois, suddenly opening her eyes.

"That was the beginning. You said it to me more with your looks than with your words; for I saw that, somehow, you were in the secret, and had yourself what you offered to me. _That_ I could not forget. I had never seen anybody 'satisfied' before."

"You know what it means now?" she said softly.

"To-day?-- I do!"

"No, no; I do not mean to-day. You know what I mean!" she said, with beautiful blushes.

"I know. Yes, and I have it, Lois. But you have a great deal to teach me yet."

"O no!" she said most unaffectedly. "It is you who will have to teach me."

"What?"

"Everything."

"How soon may I begin?"

"How soon?"

"Yes. You do not think Mrs. Wishart's house is the best place, or her company the best a.s.sistance for that, do you?"

"Ah, please get up!" said Lois.

But he laughed at her.

"You make me so ashamed!"

"You do not look it in the least. Shall I tell you my plans?"

"Plans!" said Lois.

"Or will you tell me your plans?"

"Ah, you are laughing at me! What do you mean?"

"You were confiding to me your plans of a little while ago; Esterbrooke, and school, and all the rest of it. My darling!--that's all nowhere."

"But,"--said Lois timidly.

"Well?"

"_That_ is all gone, of course. But--"

"You will let me say what you shall do?"

"I suppose you will."

"Your hand is in all my plans, from henceforth, to turn them and twist them what way you like. But now let me tell you my present plans. We will be married, as soon as you can accustom your self to the idea.

Hus.h.!.+--wait. You shall have time to think about it. Then, as early as spring winds will let us, we will cross to England."

"England?" cried Lois.

"Wait, and hear me out. There we will look about us a while and get such things as you may want for travelling, which one can get better in England than anywhere else. Then we will go over the Channel and see Paris, and perhaps supplement purchases there. So work our way--"

"Always making purchases?" said Lois, laughing, though she caught her breath too, and her colour was growing high.

"Certainly, making purchases. So work our way along, and get to Switzerland early in June--say by the end of the first week."

"Switzerland!"

"Don't you want to see Switzerland?"

"But it is not the question, what I might like to see."

"With me it is."

"As for that, I have an untirable appet.i.te for seeing things.

But--but," and her voice lowered, "I can be quite happy enough on this side."

"Not if I can make you happier on the other."

"But that depends. I should not be happy unless I was quite sure it was right, and the best thing to do; and it looks to me like a piece of self-indulgence. We have so much already."

The gentle manner of this scruple and frank admission touched Mr.

Dillwyn exceedingly.

"I think it is right," he said. "Do you remember my telling you once about my old house at home?"

"Yes, a little."

"I think I never told you much; but now you will care to hear. It is a good way from this place, in Foster county, and not very far from a busy little manufacturing town; but it stands alone in the country, in the midst of fields and woods that I used to love very much when I was a boy. The place never came into my possession till about seven or eight years ago; and for much longer than that it has been neglected and left without any sort of care. But the house is large and old-fas.h.i.+oned, and can be made very pretty; and the grounds, as I think, leave nothing to be desired, in their natural capabilities.

However, all is in disorder, and needs a good deal of work done up on it; which must be done before you take possession. This work will require some months. Where can we be better, meanwhile, than in Switzerland?"

"Can the work be done without you?"

"Yes."

He waited a bit. The new things at work in Lois's mind made the new expression of manner and feature a most delicious study to him. She had a little difficulty in speaking, and he was still and watched her.

"I am afraid to talk about it," she said at length,

"Why?"