“Only to wait till Tom has cooled down, dear.”
“Well, well, I suppose I must promise.”
“My own darling papa,” cried Maude, kissing him. “I’ll write to you soon, dear; and as soon as Tom is quiet and has forgiven us, we shall all be as happy as the day is long.”
She kissed him again quickly on either cheek, and then, before he could even make up his mind to stay her, she had hurried into the hotel, leaving her father scratching his head and setting his dark wig all awry.
Chapter Twenty Eight.
The Reinforcement.
“This—this is a pretty devil of a state of affairs,” muttered the old man. “How can a man in my position make friends with a confounded fellow who goes about turning a handle in the street? The girl’s mad—mad as can be, and—Ah, Tom, my boy.”
“Hallo, governor,” said that personage, sharply. “What’s the matter?”