"'Tis only this; get married as soon as possible. I shall soon be entitled to ask for two more weeks of absence, and then——"
"I shall be ready," said Kate softly, yet with a look which made Jermyn wonder how much happier a man could be without losing his senses.
"One thing I must do at once, though," said Kate, suddenly regaining her alertness and self-control. "I must apologize abjectly to Fenie for my shameful suspicion that she had been engaged in a flirtation with you. I must do it this very evening. Please take me around there at once."
"And rob myself of one of my few remaining hours of bliss?"
"You must learn to be blissful while doing whatever I wish you to do."
Fenie was so surprised by the communication which Kate made that she did not think to be indignant; on the contrary, she laughed, which was the worst punishment she could have inflicted. Meanwhile, Trif was telling Jermyn that he and Kate must take dinner with her and Phil the next night. The other happy couple would be present, so would the Admiral, and the dinner would be the finest she had ever arranged.
"Yes," said Trixy, "there's to be ice-cream, and the other kind of ice, and mamma says I can eat a lot of both; and there's to be a s'prise, too."
Trif nodded warningly at Trixy. She could not remember which of her prospective dishes had been alluded to in family conversation as a surprise, yet she warned her daughter to be quiet.
"She doesn't mean the letter?" whispered Jermyn.