“Come in,” said she, smiling, and leading the way into the big farm living room; she had decided that this was to be the dining-room of the establishment, and had furnished it accordingly.
Mat followed her shyly, and remained near the door until, by easy stages, she had coaxed him into a chair at the further end. He was beautifully washed and combed, and clad in his best clothes, and beautifully awkward and bashful withal.
“It’s very kind of you to bring me this,” she said; “and I’m very glad to have an opportunity of thanking you for the help you gave us the other day. You ran away so fast that I had no chance of speaking to you.”
“’Twere nowt, that,” said Mat, in a voice husky from bashfulness. “Ah’d ha’ coom and given ye better help than that yesterday when Ah saw t’ goods coom, but Ah didn’t like.”
“Would you? Well, we should have found plenty for you to do. But your father wouldn’t have liked it, of course.”
“Feyther! Ah bean’t afreeaid o’ feyther!” cried Mat, in a burst of energetic defiance. “Neea, it wasna’ for him that Ah didn’t coom. But Ah thowt maybe ye’d ha’ been so angry with him for’s rudeness that ye wouldn’t care to ha’ seen me ageean.”
“Oh, I knew you had nothing to do with that.”
“That’s true enoof; and Ah coom to-neeght to say”—and Mat looked down on the floor and grew scarlet to the tips of his ears—“that ye mustn’t be surprised if things doan’t work straight here at first. Feyther’s a nasty coostomer when he’s crossed, and there’s no denying he’s wild at a stranger takkin’ this pleeace. An’ if he can do ye and yer feyther an ill turn he’s not t’ man to stick at it. An’ if yer feyther don’t knaw mooch aboot farmin’, ye may tell him not to tak’ any advice from moine. But if ye should be in a difficulty aboot matters o’ t’ farm, ye can just send for me on t’ quiet, and Ah’ll help ye all Ah can. Ah beean’t ower bright maybe, as ye can see for yerself, Miss, but Ah understand t’ farm, and what Ah can do for ye Ah will.”
Mat had strung himself up to this speech by a great effort, and he reeled it off without any sort of pause, as if it had been an article of faith that he had got by rote. Then he got up and gave a hopeless look towards the door, as if that was his goal, and he was utterly without an idea how to reach it.
Olivia rose too, and turned towards the fire. Her impulsive nature was so deeply moved by this rough but genuine friendliness that she had no words ready to express her feelings.