"I have to thank papa for the liberty I enjoy in this room; but for him I should have had the usual bare walls and no conveniences whatever. If you had seen all the newspaper articles I read up, giving the experience of practical housekeepers, you would not wonder at the change which, with the help of a carpenter, I made in this room. I am monarch of all I survey in this part of the house, as mamma does not care how many experiments go on here as long as everything is satisfactory that comes out of it."
All pleasant things come to an end, and the early breakfast in the kitchen was no exception to the rule; but it remained a bright spot in the memory of both, and in after-years was often referred to.
A few minutes later Guy left the house, and, for the first time, he left it contented and happy, the sweet "Good-bye" in the hall being in strong contrast to the usual curt dismissal that had fallen to his lot hitherto when Dexie showed him out.
CHAPTER XLI.
Dexie stood in the doorway until her lover was out of sight; then, remembering that the little table in the kitchen would tell tales, she was soon stepping briskly about, and quickly removed all traces of the early meal. Going softly into her father's room, she found him awake and feeling very well, and in the best of spirits.
"I heard you in the hall," said he, pretending to scold. "A fine time for a young man to be leaving the house, isn't it, now? I am astonished at you, Dexie!"
"Well, dear papa, I am astonished too!" and they both laughed. "I am sure if anyone had told me such a thing was about to happen, I would have thought him a fit subject for a lunatic asylum."
"You look very happy over it, dear, or your face tells a story! But I thought I smelt coffee when I woke up."