“But let’s sleep together tonight, Doris,” suggested Alice. “I do so hate to be alone.”
“So do I,” agreed the other; “I don’t mind changing to blue for once.”
The girls unpacked the dainty wardrobes which their mothers had sent. Only two suit-cases still stood untouched in the center of the rose room.
“Why, that’s funny,” remarked Ruth, suddenly; “I wonder who would send Frieda’s!”
“I don’t think anyone sent it,” returned Ethel, quietly. “I think Mrs. Andrews purchased the whole thing herself. Won’t it just be a crime if she doesn’t get here to enjoy it?”
“It certainly will,” said Ruth, though she felt that if Ethel knew the real facts she would add, “your crime, I mean.”
The girls made a very pretty effect as they descended the beautiful stairway that evening, and were joined at the foot by the boys. They all went into the dining room together and found six small tables in different parts of the room, each with a silk shaded lamp arranged amid a centerpiece of flowers.
“It is a class party tonight,” announced the hostess; “that is, as nearly as I could arrange it. Ethel and Frances, that is your table by the window, and John Hadley and Dick Roberts are to be with you. Ruth, you and Doris are to sit at this one beside us with Jack Wilkinson and Roger Harris; and Lily, you and David will come with us. Stanley and Raymond are to take Florence and Alice to that one beside Miss Phillips; and Lawrence, you and Max may chaperone Miss Phillips and Mr. Remington. Now, I think we’re ready.”
The idea, which was Mrs. Andrews’s, was a good one, for it did away with the embarrassment of a large crowd. Conversation buzzed merrily; the dinner was not only delicious, but beautifully served. Ruth, surveying the dining room and the girls in a quick glance, decided that even an unprejudiced observer would think their table the most attractive in the room; for she knew that she and Doris made a striking contrast together, each setting off the beauty of the other to advantage. Her eyes sparkled and her cheeks were flushed; she was conscious of the fact that Jack and Roger were being well entertained.
“I hear there’s a bathing party and a marshmallow roast for tomorrow,” observed Jack. “And here I’ve got to miss it—all because my sister——”