What would she not give never to have spoken them! Oh, what base ingratitude to the kindest and dearest of fathers! How those dreadful words must have pained his loving heart! how had she found it in hers to hurt him so? for, oh, indeed, she did love him dearly, dearly; though she could hardly expect him to believe it any more!
What if he should decide that she didn’t love him, and so that he didn’t want to keep her for his own, and should tell her she must go away and be her own mistress always, or somebody else’s child!
Her heart almost stood still at the dreadful idea; but in a moment she remembered with relief, that he had once said he would have no right to let her go away from his care and authority—even if he wanted to be rid of her—because God had given her to him to be protected and provided for and trained up for his service; so there could be no danger of that; for papa was a good Christian man who always tried to do exactly as the Bible said.
It was growing dark; the supper-bell would soon ring, and—should she go down to the table?
She dreaded meeting the family, and felt ashamed to look her father in the face; and since she was her own mistress, she could do as she pleased about it; but she would rather do as she supposed papa would wish; and besides she began to feel hungry.
The bell rang and she obeyed the summons.
As she stepped out into the upper hall she and Max met face to face.
His eyes opened wide in surprise.
“Why do you look at me so;” she asked, half angrily, and feeling her cheeks grow hot.
“Because I thought you would surely have to stay in your room for at least a week, after talking as you did to papa this afternoon. I should never dare to speak so to him, and I wouldn’t for the world hurt his feelings so. If you had seen the pained look that came over his face——”