With his hand to his chin and his head canted sidewise, Patrick McGee gave her a look of injured reproof.
“Desaving ye, me darlint?” he said. “I wouldn’t do that for the worruld!”
“Now hold on right where you are,” commanded Miss Swazey. “Don’t you dare to ‘darlint’ me. Why, you scoundrel—to think of you coming around here with such terrible inflammation and then calling me darlint! And you tried to hug me—you know you did! There’s the door, sir!”
“A foine door it is,” said Patrick, as he closed it. “Exchuse me av Oi forgot to shut it behoind me. Now phwats the use av gittin’ dishturbed loike this over a little thing, Maggie, dear?”
“Maggie, dear; Maggie, dear? How do you know my name is Maggie?”
“Phwoy, me fri’nd Dinnis towld me, av course.”
“Your friend! your friend! So you shamelessly confess you’re the friend of that deceiving monster! Oh, I wish I had him here. I wouldn’t do a thing to him! I’d scratch his eyes out! I’d pull his carroty hair out by the roots! The monster! Deceiving a poor trusting girl like me!”
“Hush now,” protested McGee. “Don’t be too harrud on Dinnis, the poor bhoy. He couldn’t hilp it, you know.”
“Couldn’t help it? Couldn’t help having sixteen or seventeen girls at the same time?”
“But ye see he was such a fascinating divvil,” whispered Pat, with a grin and a wink. “The girruls, the darlints, wouldn’t let him alone at all, at all. But it nearly broke poor Dinnis’ heart whin Katie nabbed him and led him to the praste. She meant business, and there was nivver a bit av a chance for him to escape. Whin it was all over he says to me, says he: ‘Pathrick, I lave it to yez to break the news to me Maggie. It’s me Maggie Oi loved most of all other girruls in all the worruld. It’s me Maggie Oi meant to marry. Tell her, the swate crather, that me heart do be breaking. Oi’ll nivver see her again. Oi’m done wid me job, and ye’ve got it, Pathrick. Oi’m going to lave this city and go far away to some foreign country. Oi think Oi shall go to New Jersey.’ Then the poor bhoy broke down and placed his head on me breast and sprinkled me bosom wid his tears. Exchuse me, Miss Swazey, but Oi have to wipe me eyes.”