Absorbed in thought, she started as a tap came at the cottage door,—and rising, she hurriedly put the package out of sight, just as Angus entered.
"Mary," he said, as he came towards her—"Do you know, I've been thinking we had better get quietly married as soon as possible?"
She smiled.
"Why? Is the book finished?" she asked.
"No, it isn't. I wish it was! But it will be finished in another month——"
"Then let us wait that other month," she said. "You will be happier, I know, if the work is off your mind."
"Yes—I shall be happier—but Mary, I can't bear to think of you all alone in this little cottage——"
She gently interrupted him.
"I was all alone for five years after my father died," she said. "And though I was sometimes a little sad, I was not dull, because I always had work to do. Dear old David was a good companion, and it was pleasant to take care of him—indeed, this last year has been quite a happy one for me, and I shan't find it hard to live alone in the cottage for just a month now. Don't worry about me, Angus!"
He stooped and picked up Charlie, who, since his master's death, had been very dispirited.