er mother. "And it fits me like a glove!" Her cheeks were almost as
pink as her gown. Her blue eyes glowed with pleasure. She looked like a
pretty pink blossom as she stood with the sunshine pouring in on her.

Lucy smiled at the compliment to her skill. "You do look nice, dear."

Holding out her crisp, pink skirt, Mona danced gaily round the kitchen,
the breeze blowing in at the open door ruffled her hair a little.
She drew herself up, breathless, and glanced out. Everything certainly
looked very tempting out of doors. She longed to go and have a run,
the breeze and the sunshine seemed to be calling her. She scarcely liked,
though, to leave her mother, tired as she was, and still busy at the blue
frock.

While she was standing looking out, her father appeared at the gate,
a letter in his hand. He came up the path reading it. When he came to
the porch he looked up and saw Mona.

"Oh, my! How smart we are!"

"Do you like it, father? Isn't it pretty?"

"Fine! And now I s'pose you're longing to go out and show it off!"
He laughed, and pinched her cheeks. Mona felt quite guilty at his quick
reading of her thoughts, but before she could reply he went on, more
gravely, "I've got a letter from your grandmother. She sends her love to
you." He went inside and put the letter down on the table before Lucy.

"She doesn't seem very well," he said, with a pucker on his brow, "and she
complains of being lonely. I'm very glad she's got nice neighbours handy.
They'd be sure to run in and see her, and look after her a bit if she's
bad. I shouldn't like to feel she was ailing, and all alone."

Mona's face dropped, and her heart too. She felt horribly guilty.
"Would Mrs. Lane go in and sit with her for company? Would she look after
her if she was bad? Had they made up their quarrel?" she wondered,
"or were they still not on speaking terms?" She did not know whether to
tell her father of the quarrel or not, so she said nothing.

Lucy had been busy trying to frame an excuse for sending Mona out.
She knew she was longing to go.

"Mona," she said, when at last they had finished discussing the letter and
its contents, "would you like to go down to Mr. Henders' for some tea and
sugar, and go on to Dr. Edwards for my medicine? He said it would be
ready whenever anyone could come for it."

Mona beamed with pleasure. "I'll go and put on my hat and boots now this
minute," and within ten she was ready, and walking,