see her, and Page
took him off into the drawing-room across the hall. Mrs. Wessels seized
upon the occasion to slip away unobserved, and Laura and Jadwin were
left alone.

"Well, my girl," began Jadwin, "how's the day gone with you?"

She had been seated at the centre table, by the drop light--the only
light in the room--turning over the leaves of "The Age of Fable,"
looking for graceful and appropriate names for the yacht. Jadwin leaned
over her and put his hand upon her shoulder.

"Oh, about the same as usual," she answered. "I told Page and Aunt
Wess' this morning."

"What did they have to say?" Jadwin laid a soft but clumsy hand upon
Laura's head, adding, "Laura, you have the most wonderful hair I ever
saw."

"Oh, they were not surprised. Curtis, don't, you are mussing me." She
moved her head impatiently; but then smiling, as if to mitigate her
abruptness, said, "It always makes me nervous to have my hair touched.
No, they were not surprised; unless it was that we were to be married
so soon. They were surprised at that. You know I always said it was too
soon. Why not put it off, Curtis--until the winter?"

But he scouted this, and then, as she returned to the subject again,
interrupted her, drawing some papers from his pocket.

"Oh, by the way," he said, "here are the sketch plans for the
alterations of the house at Geneva. The contractor brought them to the
office to-day. He's made that change about the dining-room."

"Oh," exclaimed Laura, interested at once, "you mean about building on
the conservatory?"

"Hum--no," answered Jadwin a little slowly. "You see, Laura, the
difficulty is in getting the thing done this summer. When we go up
there we want everything finished, don't we? We don't want a lot of
workmen clattering around. I thought maybe we could wait about that
conservatory till next year, if you didn't mind."

Laura acquiesced readily enough, but Jadwin could see that she was a
little disappointed. Thoughtful, he tugged his mustache in silence for
a moment. Perhaps, after all, it could be arranged. Then an idea
presented itself to him. Smiling a little awkwardly, he said:

"Laura, I tell you what. I'll make a bargain with you."

She looked up as he hesitated. Jadwin sat down at the table opposite
her and leaned forward upon his folded arms.

"Do you know," he began, "I happened to think--Well, here's what I
mean," he suddenly declared decisively. "Do you know, Laura, that ever
since we'v