Johanna looked at him sharply.
“Faith, I’m believing ye know what the wee laddy’s getting.”
“Maybe I do, but I’m not going to be telling one of ye—not till it gets here.”
It was a very excited group that gathered in the window nook and waited for the stage-driver to make the trip up to the hilltop. It would take some time, they knew, for the going was slow, as he had reported the night before, and they all waited with a reasonable amount of patience. All but Barney. He strode up and down the living-room, slapping his knees and chuckling to himself as if he were bursting with the rarest, biggest piece of news a man ever had to keep to himself.
“For the love of St. Patrick, can’t ye sit down and keep quiet a minute, man?” Johanna asked in desperation. “By the way ye are acting ye’ll have the lad thinking his father’s sent him a live elephant or some one o’ those creatures that run wild in the East.”
With a final triumphant whoop Barney sprang to the door and threw it open.
“’Tis almost here!” he cried. “I can hear the bells on the sleigh.”
“So can I,” cried David. “And there’s the team and the sleigh and—Why, there’s somebody in it besides the driver!”
He was off from the window-seat and beside Barney at the door, and the others followed quickly, as the driver touched the team with his whip and the sleigh flew into plain view. Yes, there certainly was some one on the seat with the driver!
“Mercy on us!” gasped Johanna.