"Now—and—then!" mocked Betty Nelson, with a laugh. "Better say now—and—always. No, thank you," and with a shake of her head she declined some candy from the bag. "Just had lunch a little while ago. Mother and I ate on the train."
"Where were you?" demanded Mollie. "At the house they said you were out of town, and we thought it strange, as you hadn't said anything about going away, especially as we so recently came back from Florida."
"It was just a little trip, suddenly taken," Betty explained. "Mother and I went down to the shore to select our summer cottage."
"And did you?" asked Mollie, with sparkling eyes.
"We did, and, oh, it's such a darling place!"
"Where?" came the question in a chorus.
"At Ocean View, the prettiest place on the New England coast, I think. Of course it's small, and old fashioned, and all that, but——"
"Oh, how I wish we were going to some place like that!" exclaimed Mollie.
"So do I," chimed in Grace. "Father talks of Lake Champlain again, and I detest it."
"How about you, Amy?" asked the Little Captain, turning to the quiet girl.