“What hasn't this singular boy reflected upon,” thought Ruth.
“In a few years I'm going to take the money my father left me, marry, and go abroad and be a writer, Miss Adgate,” declared Jack.
“Ah,—that might not be a bad idea. Have you selected the young lady?” Ruth enquired.
“I've been looking about, among the girls here,” Jack answered, “but I don't find any I can fall in love with,” he added plaintively. “They're all rather silly and superficial. I should like to find someone like you,” he declared with abrupt enthusiasm. “Someone who's pretty, someone who's a soft sweet voice, thinks about things,—likes to read, that sort of thing. Yes,” he said, gazing at her, “if you were younger or I older, I should like you to marry me, I should ask you to marry me.”
“But no divorce,” Ruth threatened merrily.
“No divorce? No—of course not!” said Jack in sober disgust. “When once we're married it's for better for worse. I shall say that from the first. Don't we always have to live with people we quarrel with at first? Look at my mother and Mary. She was for flouncing that girl from the house the first week, and Mary gave notice, day after she got in. Then they shook down and my mother thinks Mary's a treasure and Mary'd cut her hand off for my mother. She would for me, told me so. Gives me all the cream and pie I want, never tells when I come in late from the Post Office. No, the sooner you find out you're tied to the person you love by a hard knot for life,—the sooner you realise that marriage is a Sacrament, the sooner—if you've got an ounce of sense and the Catholic Faith to help you—you learn to shake down and be happy. Besides, my wife shall be in love with me and she'll do exactly as I like,” declared Master Jack Enderfield.
IX
A gay jingle-jangle, the concord of sleigh-bells, the muffled piaffering of horses' hoofs and the door-knocker went again rat-tat.... Voices sounded in the hall, Rutherford and Robert Leffingwell entered the room, Jack's tête-à-tête was interrupted.
“Good-bye, Miss Adgate,” said Jack, abruptly. He cast a scowl of dislike at the jovial face of Rutherford. Before Ruth could make reply Jack was out the front door, and his friend had a glimpse of a pair of boyish legs leaping the offset.
“Splendid way of getting rid of obstacles,” Rutherford said as he followed Miss Adgate's eyes, “but what an odd boy it is! We're in for a blizzard, Miss Adgate,” added he, and he approached the fire and cheerfully rubbed his hands.