"As bright as a new five-dollar gold piece," subconsciously acquiesced the brother. He was still thinking of the lunch.
"And ambitious for bigger things," added Mrs. Rodney.
"I don't doubt it," nodded her brother. It occurred to him that Tom was capable of ordering a mighty fine dinner.
"Then, Bert, why don't you get him a good position in your insurance office?"
"What!" he cried. "Pardon me, Mary, I didn't quite—"
"Hush!" she laid a finger on her lips. "Don't be so noisy, Bert. You'll wake Toodleums. Yes," she went on in an undertone, "a good position in your insurance office. One in which Tom could shine and Toodleums feel proud of his Dada. You know how attached you are to Toodleums—the precious!"
"Yes, but you see, Mary," her brother began to protest, "the shining positions in our office are pretty well all occupied. I don't glitter much yet, and I've been years climbing up from the bottom."
"But Tom is so brilliant—such a fine talker," declared Mrs. Rodney enthusiastically. "If he were once given the chance he would jump right up to the top. Everybody likes him."
"Well, our president has been pretty good to me," he remarked. "I'd really hate to see him lose his job—I mean within the next few weeks—even on Tom's account."
"Bert, don't be ridiculous and sarcastic. Toodleums—the love—does not like people who are sarcastic."