“You don’t know how glad I shall be when everybody knows,” said Katharine after a time, as they paused at a crossing to let a van pass by.
“Not half so glad as I shall be,” answered Ralston. “But it couldn’t be helped. I know it’s been hateful to have this secret—well, not exactly hanging over us, but to have it a part of us all this time. Still—I don’t see when we could have announced it. There’s been one thing after another to make it impossible, and somehow we’ve got used to it. They say there’s nothing like having a secret in common to make two people fall in love with each other. It seems to me it’s true.”
“We didn’t need it, dear,” said Katharine, softly, as they began to cross the street.
“No—not exactly.” Ralston laughed. “But it hasn’t made it any worse, at all events. But what moments we’ve had. Do you remember when they began to talk about secret marriages that night?”
“Don’t I!” laughed Katharine. “I thought I should have gone through the floor! How well you behaved, Jack! I expected that you’d break out every minute and fall upon poor cousin Ham. But you didn’t. As for me, I got scarlet, and I don’t often blush, do I? Dark people don’t. Well—it’s all over now.”
“Not till we’ve had our talk out with your father. We can’t be quite sure of what will happen till then.”
“No—but he can’t unmarry us, can he? So what can he do? He can say that he’ll disinherit me. That’s the worst he could possibly do, and what difference would it make? You’re going to be one of the rich, rich, rich men, Jack—with ever so many millions more than you can possibly spend on onions and honey—like the wayward old man of Kilkenny, you know. Besides, papa will not be angry at all. He’ll simply dance with delight. I believe he’s secretly afraid that we’re cheating him, because we never speak of ever announcing our engagement. He thinks we’re revenging ourselves now, and each means to marry somebody else, and he’s in fits lest he should lose you for a son-in-law. Isn’t it fun?”
“Yes—your beloved father in fits, as you call it—and dancing with delight—it doesn’t lack the comic element. But it looks so simple now, just to go and tell him, and be done with it. Why haven’t we done it before?”
“Oh—we couldn’t. It wouldn’t have been safe until the will was settled. He was really dreadfully nervous all that time. I never saw him in such a state before. It really wouldn’t have been safe. No—this is our first chance. We might have spoken a day or two ago, of course, but not much sooner.”
“No—we couldn’t,” said Ralston. “But I’m glad—oh, tremendously glad that it’s coming at last.”