"Down, darling!" she said to the pointer, and "be still, beauty!" to the horse. Then she turned to Nicholas again.
"I've really and truly got something to tell you, Nick Burr."
"Out with it, then. Don't worry."
She swung her long legs idly from the saddle. "Suppose I don't."
"Then don't."
"Suppose I do."
"I'll be hanged if I care!"
"Oh, you do, you story. You're just dying to know—but it's serious."
She patted the horse's neck, watching Nicholas with child-like eagerness.
"Well, I'm—I'm—there! I told you you were dying to know!"