She was out of the room before Nancy could say a word; and in a few minutes she was back again.
“It was Jim, as I supposed. He made the proper inquiries about your health, and is going to join us for lunch.”
Nancy drew a breath of relief. She might have known that Miss Ashton would not simply send him away without letting her see him.
After hearing what Jeanette and Martha did in her absence, Nancy got up and dressed; and they all went down to lunch.
Jim, as Miss Ashton had directed, was waiting in the white parlor.
“Go and get Jim,” she said to Nancy, as they turned toward the dining room. “We’ll go on in.”
Jim, who had been sitting before the fireplace, rose as Nancy entered, and crossed the room to meet her.
“You’re all right, Nan?” he asked, a bit breathlessly, his kind brown eyes gazing searchingly down into hers.
“Perfectly, thanks to you,” she replied, giving him her hand.
He held it, clasped firmly in both of his for a long moment.