There were several other “Good-mawnin’s,” to each of which Geraldine responded with the name of the black salutatorian.
At table and near the house Richard had noted the coming and going of many negroes. Mrs. Wells had said that nearly one hundred years ago her grandfather Wells had brought his slaves with him from Virginia. In that time there must have been much marrying and giving in marriage. Had the progeny of this prolific race stayed on at “Red Jacket”? It seemed so. He was about to ask her, but her mind was tenaciously on her flare-up of the night before. With the greatest attempt at tactfulness she was trying to show him how lightly she had conceived the matter—she would cure her blunder of speech by more speech!
“Well, you made me angry, and I showed my claws. I’m glad I didn’t scratch, because it is all over now and I am not in the least angry with you.”
“You must be angry with me often,” he talked and slid along the pebbly incline; “it’s a sign of affection. I believe the Serbian word for darling is almost the same as ‘I’ll strangle you.’ Loving and strangling are very close together. I don’t know why. The two electric currents are charged, I suppose, and the slightest contact starts a flash and a shock.”
“But I was angry with Walter, too,” she said, “a few moments ago, when he made that absurd suggestion about us. And here we are combining for his good—not our own.”
There were many things he might have said here. He had his own opinion of the cause of her anger, but he did not care to broach it. Was she going to make eyes at him after all, and hardly before he had got settled in this beautiful place? He did not care to leave just yet.
He decided to avoid the dangerous topic, over which she fluttered with such obvious interest.
Mrs. Phœbe Norris was not at home, but her house was open to the four winds. In a neat little room Richard found bathing suits of many sizes, and managed to discover a fitting combination of upper and nether garments.
A whir and a splash told him that Geraldine had taken her plunge and was throwing herself about in joyous abandon. Out of his window he soon saw her, going at a swift pace, hand over hand, a splendid “crawl” stroke.
The sight gave him a quick thrill. Here, too, was a swimmer, not a dabbler in pools, but possibly one who could do a long journey with him. It was pleasant to swim for miles alone; but it would be a new and rare experience to troll along with a companion. He hurried his preparation in anticipation.