"No, indeed. Never felt better."
"I know—it was nursing Cass that did it. Rose wrote me all about it. If you don't look better right away, I shall make you go straight to bed and I'll come feed you chicken soup."
"My fever's rising this minute!" cried Quin, "I believe I've got a chill. Send for the ambulance!"
"Not till after the wedding. I'll have you know I am to be Aunt Enid's bridesmaid."
"You've got nothing on me," said Quin, "I'm the best man!"
This struck them both as being so excruciatingly funny that they did not see the approaching cavalcade, with Madam walking slowly at its head, until Quin heard his name called.
"Oh, dear," said Eleanor, "there they come. And I've got a thousand questions to ask you and a million things to tell you."
"Come here, young man, and see me walk!" was Madam's greeting. "Do I look like a cripple? Leg off at the knee, crutches for life? Bah! We fooled them, didn't we?"
Quin made a tremendous fuss over the old lady. He also threw the aunties into pleased confusion by pretending that he was going to kiss them, and occasioned no end of laughter and good-natured banter by his incessant teasing of Mr. Chester. He was in that state of effervescence that demanded an immediate outlet.
Madam found him so amusing that she promptly detailed him as her special escort.