She began to dance about the room in her exquisitely graceful fashion. Suddenly she danced up to Grace. “Do you know,” she said, “that Jessie Wyndham had a letter from her mother this morning, and I’m to go to them to spend Christmas? Isn’t it glorious? You’ll have to fork out, my cherubs, to buy your darling some new frocks. I can do with three—one extra morning frock and two evening. Twenty pounds will do the business. We had better go and see Miss Weston about it, or she may get filled up with orders. And, by the way, afterwards, of course, Gracie, I’m coming on to you. Why, how glum you look! Surely you’d love to have me?”
“Of course I would, and so would Anne; but the fact is, we are not allowed to ask anybody without father’s leave.”
“Well, write to him and tell him that I’m coming.”
Anne turned very white and looked at Grace.
Grace said, in a nervous tone, “We’d best go and dress.”
“You have written to your father,” said Kitty. “I see it in your faces. Well, what did he say?”
“He said—he said—oh, Kit, we are fit to burst with rage—he said you were not to come.”
A very rich colour now did indeed spread over Kitty’s face. She was thoughtful for a minute; then she said quietly, “What will you bet me that I’ll not go straight from the Wyndhams’ to you, and that Daddy Dodd won’t fetch me in his motor-car—the new Mercedes that you told me he had bought?”
“Oh Kitty, we don’t want to bet.”
“You must bet—you must, you must! I’m going to bet ten pounds with you that I’m going. Now then, now then! You’ll each of you pay me ten pounds if I go, and if I don’t I pay you ten pounds between you. Come, that’s fair. Settle it quick, settle it quick.”