"Elizabeth, how shocking," laughed Nan. "You must have been taking lessons from Walter." And then, for no apparent reason at all, or perhaps because of the expression in her chum's eyes as they rested upon her, Nan became suddenly confused and hurriedly changed the subject.
"Let's go outside," she suggested, rising and making toward the door of the stateroom, which opened directly out upon the deck. "It—it's awfully hot in here."
Bess laughed tantalizingly and stretched lazily as she prepared to follow her chum.
"Nan, honey," she drawled, irrelevantly, or so it seemed to Nan, "you are a darling, but, oh, you're awfully foolish."
CHAPTER XVIII
A STARTLING REVELATION
It was a wonderful journey, that one to Jacksonville, and one the girls never forgot. At first the weather was unpleasant, cold and blowy, but toward the afternoon of the second day the gentle winds of the south fanned them with their welcoming breath, and heavy wraps began to feel burdensome.
At first the girls had been afraid that they would become seasick and had wondered what they would do should such a weakness overtake them.