“Did mother send you here?”
“She said that I would find you between the end of the planks and Mayfield. Come through the grounds of Old Place with me. I want you to see Mrs. Towne’s flowers and a new arbor that Dr. Towne has been putting up.”
“No, thank you,” said Tessa rising and tossing away a handful of withering wild flowers.
“You don’t know how lovely the place is. Dr. Towne is always thinking of some new thing to do; I asked him if it were for that grand wife that he has been waiting so long for, and, do you believe, he said ‘Yes,’ as sincerely as could be. He looked up at his mother and smiled when he said it, too. I believe they know something. Nan Gerard didn’t get him any way! Won’t she have a lovely time travelling! I always did want to go to Europe; Gerald never would have taken me. I can’t believe that he’s dead, can you?”
As Tessa was busy with her veil and did not speak, Sue rattled on.
“Did you know that I’ve been making another visit at Miss Gesner’s? They call their place Blossom Hill, and it has been so sweet with blossoms.”
“Is she as lovely as ever?”
“I don’t know,” said Sue, doubtfully; “sometimes I think that she is stiff and proud; the truth is she doesn’t like to have her old brother pay attention to me. She thinks that he is too old a boy for such nonsense; but he doesn’t think so! Good for me that he doesn’t. What are you walking so fast for? I went to drive with him every day after business hours; we did look stylish!”
“With Miss Gesner, too?” queried Tessa, in a voice that she could not steady.
“No, indeed,” laughed Sue, “and that’s the beauty of it. What did we want her along for? Of course we talked about Gerald; we talked a great deal about him. I told him how kind he had been to me and how I adored him and how I mourned for him. I am sure that I cried myself sick; Dr. Towne gave me something one night to keep me from having hysterics! I should have died of grief if Mrs. Towne hadn’t taken me to Old Place; she was like a mother, and he was as kind as kind could be! It was like the other time before I was engaged to Gerald; I couldn’t believe that it wasn’t that time. The Gesners were kind, too; I thought at first that Miss Gesner really loved me; but she began to be stiff after she saw her brother kiss me. I couldn’t help it; I told him that it was too soon for such goings on.”