"And I believe it. And what do you care for the others? It is what we
know of ourselves, Mary," she drew a quick breath. "It is what we know
of ourselves----"

Becky was wearing the simple frock of pale blue in which George had seen
her on that first night when he came to Huntersfield.

"Aren't you going to change?" Mary asked.

"No. It is too much trouble." Becky was in front of the mirror. Her
pearls caught the light of the candles. Her bronze hair was a shining
wave across her forehead. "It is too much trouble," she said, again, and
turned from the mirror.

She had a dozen frocks that had come in the rosy hamper--frocks that
would have made the boarders open their eyes. Frocks that would have
made Dalton open his. But Becky had the feeling that this was not the
moment for lovely clothes. She felt that she would be cheapened if she
decked herself for George.

When the two girls went down-stairs Truxton was waiting for his wife. "I
thought you would never come," he said. He drew her within the circle of
his arm, and they went out into the garden. The Judge and Mrs. Beaufort
were on the porch. Becky sat on the step and leaned her head against
Aunt Claudia's knee.

"What in the world made you ask all those people over, Becky?" the Judge
demanded.

"Oh, they're great fun, Grandfather, and I felt like it."

"Have you planned anything for them to eat, Claudia?"

"Watermelons. Calvin has put a lot of them in the spring."

The stars were thick overhead. Becky looked up at them and relaxed a
little. Since Dalton had spoken to her over the wire she had gone
through the motions of doing normal things. She had eaten and talked,
and now she was sitting quite still on the step while Aunt Claudia
smoothed her hair, and the Judge talked of things to eat.

But shut up within her was a clock which ticked and never stopped. "_He
will come--when he thinks--you are mine---- He will come--when he
thinks--you are mine----_"

Randy and his mother arrived in Little Sister, with two of the boarders
for good measure in the back seat. They had dropped Major Prime at
Flippins', where he was to make a call on Madge MacVeigh. He had
promised to come later, however, if Randy would drive over and get him.

The rest of the boarders were packed variously into their cars and the
surrey, and as soon as they arrived they proceeded to occupy the lawn and
the porch, and to overflow the garden. They made a great deal