"No, indeed!" she cried indignantly, "he"s not half so nice as you are! I wouldn"t exchange with her for all the world!"
"Thank you; that"s a very high compliment, I think; for I greatly admire my new brother-in-law," Edward said, with a gleeful laugh, and repeating his caresses.
CHAPTER XVIII.
"My cake is dough."
--_Shakespeare_.
It was a warm afternoon late in June.
"There! I"m done with lessons for a while anyway, and glad of it too!"
exclaimed Lulu Raymond, coming into Mrs. Scrimp"s sitting-room and depositing her satchel of school-books upon the table.
"So am I, Lu, for now you"ll have time to make that new dress for my dollie, won"t you?" Gracie said languidly, from the sofa where she lay.
"Yes, little pet, and ever so many other things. But oh dear! holidays aren"t much after all when you can"t go anywhere or have any fun. I do wonder when we"ll see papa again."
"Pretty soon, Lu," cried a boyish voice in tones of delight, and turning quickly she found Max at the window, wearing a brighter face than he had shown her for many a day, and holding up a bulky letter.
"O Max!" she cried, "is it from papa?"
"Yes; and I"m coming in to read it to you if you and Gracie are alone."
"Yes, we are; Aunt Beulah"s gone out calling and Ann"s busy in the kitchen."
"Then here I am!" he said, vaulting lightly in through the window.
Lulu laughed admiringly. "I"d like to try that myself," she said.
"Oh, don"t, Lu!" said Gracie, "Aunt Beulah would scold you like anything."
"Let her scold! who cares!" returned Lulu with a scornful toss of the head, while Max, who had gone to the side of Gracie"s sofa, stooped over her, and softly patting the thin pale cheek, asked how she felt to-day.
""Bout the same as usual, Maxie," she said, with a languid smile.
"O Max, hurry and tell us what papa says in the letter!" cried Lulu impatiently. "Is it good news?"
"First-rate, girls! couldn"t be better! He"s coming here next week and going to take us all away with him!"
"Oh! oh! oh! how delightful!" cried Lulu, clapping her hands and dancing about the room, while Grace clasped her hands in ecstasy, saying, "Oh, I am so glad!"
"Come, Lu, sit down here beside us and be quiet," said Max, seating himself beside Grace on the sofa, and motioning toward a low rocking-chair near at hand. "I"m going to read the letter aloud, and then I have something to show you."
Lulu took possession of the rocking-chair, folded her hands in her lap, and Max began.
The letter was written from Saratoga, where the captain and his bride had paused for a few days on their wedding tour, and was addressed to all three of his children.
He told them of his marriage, described Violet, her mother, and the life at Ion in glowing terms, spoke very highly of Mr. and Mrs. Dinsmore and the younger members of the family, then told of their kind offer to share their happy home with his children if they should prove themselves good and obedient.
But here Lulu interrupted the reading with a pa.s.sionate outburst. "A step-mother! I won"t have her! Papa had no business to go and give her to us!"
"Why, Lu!" exclaimed Max, "of course he had a right to get married if he wanted to! And I"m very glad he did, for I"m sure they must be much nicer folks to live with than Mr. Fox and Mrs. Scrimp."
"Just like a silly boy to talk so!" returned Lulu, with a mixture of anger and scorn in her tones. "Step-mothers are always hateful and cross and abuse the children and won"t let their father love them any more, and----"
"Now who"s been telling you such lies, sis?" interrupted Max. "There are bad ones and good ones among them, the same as among other cla.s.ses of people. And papa says his new wife is sweet and kind and good to everybody. And if she loves him won"t she want to be good to his children?
I should think so, I"m sure. Now let me read the rest of his letter."
In that the captain went on to tell of the cottages by the sea engaged for the summer, and that thither he and Violet purposed to go the next week, taking his children with them. He wound up with some words of fatherly affection and hope that brighter days than they had known for a long time were now in store for them.
There was a postscript from Violet: "I am longing to see the dear children of my husband, especially poor, little sick Gracie. I am sure we shall love each other very much for his dear sake."
"There now, Lu, you see she means to be kind to us," was Max"s satisfied comment, as he refolded the missive and put it back into the envelope.
Lulu was one who never liked to retreat from a position she had once taken. "Oh, it"s easy to talk," she said, "acting"s another thing. I"m not going to be caught with chaff."
"See here!" said Max, showing a photograph.
"Oh, what a pretty lady!" cried Gracie, holding out an eager hand for it.
Max gave it to her, and Lulu sprang up and bent over her to get a good view of it also.
"Who is it?" she asked.
"Isn"t she pretty? isn"t she perfectly beautiful, and sweet-looking as she can be?" said Max, ignoring the question.
"Yes, she"s just lovely; but why don"t you say who she is, if you know?"
"She"s papa"s new wife, the new mamma you are determined to believe is going to be so hateful."
"I"m sure she won"t. She does look so sweet, I just love her already!"
Gracie said.
Lulu, too proud to retract, yet strongly drawn toward the possessor of so sweet and lovely a countenance as was pictured there, kept silence, gazing intently upon the photograph which Gracie still held.
"Whose is it, Max?" asked the latter.
"Mine I suppose, though papa doesn"t say; but we"ll find out when he comes."
"Oh, I"m so glad, so glad he"s coming soon! Aren"t you, Maxie?"
"I never was gladder in my life!" cried Max. "And just think how nice to go and live by the sea all summer! There"ll be lots of fun boating and bathing and fishing!"
"Oh, yes!" chimed in Lulu, "and papa is always so kind about taking us to places and giving us a good time."