“And did you see her with flowers in her hair?” asked Nan in a stage whisper. “Verbenas!” and then a fat boy who sang tenor 97 and passed as something of a wag sang:
|
“Sweet Evelina, Last time I seen her Stole a verbena Out of her hair.” |
At this all the young folks laughed. Miss Ann heard Nan’s stage whisper, and felt Mildred’s glance of disapproval and was quite conscious that the fat boy’s song was meant to make game of her, but nothing mattered much except that Robert Bucknor’s grandson, who looked so like him, had run up the steps to meet her and had told her she looked lovely and was now holding her hand tightly clasped against his warm young heart. She saw old Billy peeping from the pantry door as they entered the dining-room and she caught his glance of pride and gratification when she appeared with the young master.
“What I tell you?” he muttered. “Ain’t my Miss Ann the pick er the bunch?”
CHAPTER IX
The Veterans’ Big Secret
“Mumsy dear,” said Judith, “I’m going over to Buck Hill this morning and sell all kinds of things to my cousins and their guests.”
“Judith, you are not! How can you go near those people when they treat you like the dust under their feet?”