“Dear lady,” said Tom, “there is something better than magazine-cover beauty, and that thing you have.”
“You’ve said it, boy,” Reed agreed. “Come, Miss Rindy, I may call you that, mayn’t I? You are going to be good and sit for us. We won’t keep you long, and we’ll do anything in the world you ask of us, split wood, run errands, any old thing, won’t we, Tom?”
“Very well, since you have eliminated the claim for beauty I’ll promise, and you can begin your tasks by opening that box you brought up.”
“That’s easy. Lead us to it,” said Reed.
So was begun an intimacy, the results of which were far-reaching.
“When we said we didn’t know what might be around the corner, we must have had a subconscious awareness of those two boys,” said Mabel, as the two girls parted for the night. “It’s a lovely world, Ellen.”
“It’s a lovely island,” sighed Ellen, “but the summer is flying too fast.”
“‘Gather rosebuds while ye may,’” quoted Mabel. “It’s the best summer I ever had, and I mean to make the most of what is left of it.”
“Meaning?”
“Draw your own conclusions, miss. I’m not referring to ghosts.”