now is that if you've
got young Corey into business with you, in hopes of our getting into
society with his father, you better ship him at once. For I ain't
going to have it on that basis."

"Who wants to have it on that basis?" retorted her husband.

"Nobody, if you don't," said Mrs. Lapham tranquilly.

Irene had come home with the shaving in her belt, unnoticed by her
father, and unquestioned by her mother. But her sister saw it at once,
and asked her what she was doing with it.

"Oh, nothing," said Irene, with a joyful smile of self-betrayal, taking
the shaving carefully out, and laying it among the laces and ribbons in
her drawer.

"Hadn't you better put it in water, 'Rene? It'll be all wilted by
morning," said Pen.

"You mean thing!" cried the happy girl. "It isn't a flower!"

"Oh, I thought it was a whole bouquet. Who gave it to you?"

"I shan't tell you," said Irene saucily.

"Oh, well, never mind. Did you know Mr. Corey had been down here this
afternoon, walking on the beach with me?"

"He wasn't--he wasn't at all! He was at the house with ME. There! I've
caught you fairly."

"Is that so?" drawled Penelope. "Then I never could guess who gave you
that precious shaving."

"No, you couldn't!" said Irene, flushing beautifully. "And you may
guess, and you may guess, and you may guess!" With her lovely eyes she
coaxed her sister to keep on teasing her, and Penelope continued the
comedy with the patience that women have for such things.

"Well, I'm not going to try, if it's no use. But I didn't know it had
got to be the fashion to give shavings instead of flowers. But there's
some sense in it. They can be used for kindlings when they get old,
and you can't do anything with old flowers. Perhaps he'll get to
sending 'em by the barrel."

Irene laughed for pleasure in this tormenting. "O Pen, I want to tell
you how it all happened."

"Oh, he DID give it to you, then? Well, I guess I don't care to hear."

"You shall, and you've got to!" Irene ran and caught her sister, who
feigned to be going out of the room, and pushed her into a chair.
"There, now!" She pulled up another chair, and hemmed her in with it.
"He came over, and sat down on the trestle alongside of me----"

"What? As close as you are to me now?"

"You wretch! I will GIVE it to you! No, at a proper distance. And here
was this shaving on the floor, that I'd been poking with my parasol----"

"To hide your embarrassment."

"