The Desired Woman(Fiscle Part-3 Of 2) by Will N. Harben (e book reader pdf TXT) 📕

"Oh,  Oh! And Did You Hear?" She Leaned Closer To Him,  Her Lips Rigid

With Expectation. "I'm Afraid There Was A Hitch After All. The

Taxpayers Are So Opposed To Spending Money."

"It Went Through Like Greased Lightning," He Smiled. "Your Name And

Suggestions Were Mentioned In Every Speech That Was Made In Both

Houses."

He Saw Her Face Fill With Delight. She Put The Butt Of Her Riding-Whip

To Her Lips,  And Her Breast Heaved High And Sank,  Quivering.

"Oh,  Isn't It Splendid--Splendid?" She Exclaimed.

"Thanks To You,  Dolly--You,  And No One Else."

"No,  No,  It Was Growing All Along. I Only Helped A Little,  Perhaps.

But It Doesn't Matter Who Did It; It Is Done. They Will Build The

Schools."

"And You And I Will Help With Suggestions,  Won't We?" He Looked At

Her,  Quite Timidly. "I Mean,  Of Course,  That We Have Learned Some

Lessons In The House We Are Now Building. We Have Made Mistakes Here

And There That May Be Avoided In The Future."

She Said Nothing,  And He Was Sure That She Purposely Avoided His

Tentative Stare. She Bent Over The Horse's Neck,  Ran The Thick Glossy

Mane Through Her Fingers,  And Gently Patted The Animal's Shoulder.

"Jarvis,  You Must Tell Me Something About This Horse," She Said,

Firmly. "I'm Going To Know The Truth,  The Whole Truth,  And Nothing But

The Truth."

"You Want To Know His Pedigree?" He Was Staring Sheepishly. "Well--"

"No,  I Don't,  And You Know I Don't. My Father Said That You Wanted The

Horse Kept In The Stable At Home In Case--In Case Any One Had To Ride

Over Here To Communicate With Him. But No One Uses Him But Me,  And He

Has To Have Exercise Or He Will Be Ruined. It Is Almost All That I Can

Do To Control Him Now. He Breaks Into A Run The Instant Another Horse

Passes Him. Father Said Yesterday That He Did Not Understand Why You

Wanted Us To Keep Him At Our House."

The Blood Mantled The Young Planter's Brow. "They Say An Honest

Confession Is Good For The Soul," He Stammered; "And,  Dolly,  The Truth

Is That I Sent The Horse There Simply For You To Ride. You Love Riding

And Need The Exercise. You Are So Peculiar About--Well,  About Some

Things--That I Was Afraid You Would Be Offended,  But I Hope You Won't

Refuse This. I Do Love To See You On A Horse. You Ride As If You Were

Born In The Saddle."

She Looked Down On The Farther Side Of Her Mount. "It Is Very,  Very

Sweet And Kind Of You," She Said,  Falteringly. "I Believe You Mean It,

Still--" She Broke Off And Failed To Finish What She Had Started To

Say.

"You Must Not Object," He Went On,  Urgently. "It Suits Your Father And

Me To Keep A Horse There,  And If You Are Good Enough To Exercise Him

For Us,  Well And Good. If Not,  We'll Send One Of The Negroes Over To

Take Him Out Once A Day."

He Saw Her Smile Faintly. "Nobody Could Get Around You," She Answered.

"Well,  It Really Would Break My Heart To Give Him Up Now,  And I Shall

Ride Him Whenever I Feel Like It."

There Was Silence For A Moment,  Which He Broke.

"I Am Arranging A Little Surprise For Your Father." He Nodded Toward

The Grounds Behind Him. "Won't You Get Down And Come In A Moment?"

"What Is It?" She Was Already Kicking The Stirrup From Her Eager Foot.

"Come In And See." He Held Out His Arms,  As If She Were A Child

Willing To Jump.

"You Know My Awful Curiosity," She Laughed,  Putting Her Hands On His

Shoulders And Leaning Downward. Her Face Sank Close To His--So Close

That Her Breath Fanned His Cheek. He Took Her Slight Weight On Himself

As He Helped Her Down. Throwing The Rein Over One Of The Palings,  He

Opened The Gate And Stood Aside For Her To Enter.

"What Is It? Why Are You So Awfully Mysterious?" She Asked.

"Because My Surprise May Not Come Up To Your Expectations," He Said.

"Come With Me."

He Led Her Across The Lawn To A Small One-Roomed Brick House At The

Side Of The Main Building,  Adjoining The White Glass-Roofed

Conservatory. Taking A Key From His Pocket,  He Unlocked The Door And

Pushed It Open And Invited Her To Go In. She Found Herself In A Well-

Lighted Room Comfortably Furnished With Easy-Chairs,  Rugs,  And A Fine

Roll-Top Desk,  Supplied With New Account-Books And Writing-Material Of

All Kinds.

"It Is To Be Your Father's Private Office," Saunders Explained. "But

He Doesn't Know It. It Struck Me That He Would Need A Place Like This

To Meet The Hands In On Pay-Days And To Do His Writing. The Furniture

Came Yesterday. He Superintended The Unloading Himself. He Thinks The

Office Is For Me."

Involuntarily Dolly Clasped Her Hands In Sheer Delight.

"Oh,  How Good You Are!" She Cried. "Nothing You Could Possibly Do

Would Please Him More. You Have Given Him His Old Pride Back,  Jarvis,

And This Will Add To It. I Have Been Wanting To Speak To You About

Him,  But I Hardly Knew How. He Is Absolutely A New Man In Every Way,

And It Is All Due To Your Confidence And Encouragement."

He Found Himself Without Available Response. She Sat Down In The

Revolving Desk-Chair And Picked Up A Pen And Pretended To Write. "It

Is Simply 'Scrumptious!'" She Laughed,  Merrily. "Oh,  I Should Like--"

She Stopped Abruptly,  Stood Up,  And Looked At The Door. "I Must Be

Going. Why,  You've Even Given Him A Clock. And The Maps On The Walls

Will Be Very Useful. That's Our County,  Isn't It?"

As He Nodded He Followed Her To The Grass Outside. "You Started To Say

That You Would Like Something," He Ventured. "What Was It,  Dolly?"

"I Should Really Like To Be Present When You Show It To Him And Tell

Him That It Is For Him. Jarvis,  I Almost Lost Respect For Him Once. I

Almost Ceased To Love Him,  But It Has All Come Back. I Am Proud Of Him

Again,  And You Are Responsible For It. Why Did You Do So Much For

Him?"

"Because He Is _Your_ Father!" He Nipped The Words As They Were

Forming On His Lips. Instead,  He Said Aloud: "He Is Just The Man I

Needed. We Are Working Finely Together. You Must Be Present When I

Tell Him About The Office; He Will Be Here This Afternoon. I Will

Detain Him With Some Pretext Or Other Till Three O'clock. Couldn't You

Be Here Then?"

"Oh Yes,  And I'd Like To Bring My Mother,  Uncle John,  And George."

"A Good Idea," Saunders Said. "We'll Have Some Fresh Cider And Cakes--

The Old-Fashioned Gingerbread Sort."

When They Had Reached Her Horse,  He Held Out His Hand For Her Foot.

She Placed It In It,  And He Lightly Lifted Her To The Saddle.

He Stood At The Gate And Saw Her Vanish Down The Road. "Why Didn't I

Say What I Want To Say? Why Didn't I Tell Her How I Feel And Throw

Myself On Her Mercy? What Is It That Always Checks Me? Is It Mostyn?

My God! Does She Still Love Him,  And Will He Always Stand Between Me

And My Happiness?"

For Mostyn The Week Which Ensued After His Wife's Secret Elopement Was

A Period Of Sheer Mental Torture. Every Minute He Expected The

Startling Tidings To Reach His Friends And Associates. Every Morning

At Breakfast He Studied The Crafty And Sullen Face Of Old Mitchell And

The Swarthy Visages Of The Servants To See If Suspicions Of The Truth

Were Dawning. At The Bank He Tried To Overhear The Conversations Of

The Bookkeepers,  Sometimes Fancying That A Burst Of Low Laughter Or A

Whispered Colloquy Had Him For Their Incentive. He Was Sure That It

Was Little Less Than A Miracle That The Matter Had Not Leaked Out.

With Delbridge Getting Into Harness At His Desk,  He Had Considerable

Time On His Hands,  Which He Spent In Long Nervous Walks,  Generally In

The Suburbs Of The City. For That Week He Wholly Neglected His Child.

There Was Something Unbearable In The Thought Of The Boy's Future

Social Status,  Left In The Care,  As He Was,  Of An All But Witless

Grandfather And A Father Upon Whom The Contempt Of The Public Was So

Soon To Fall. Infinitely Horrible Was The Reflection That Little Dick

Would Inevitably Grow Into A Comprehension Of The Family Calamity And

Inquire As To Its Causes. It Was Saturday Night,  Eight Days After The

Elopement. Mostyn Had That Day Been Irritated--That Is,  As Much As A

Man In His Plight Could Be Irritated By Any Extraneous Incident--By

Delbridge's Open Criticism Of The Negligent Condition Of Some Of His

Accounts. The Work Of Going Over The Books With His Successor In

Rectifying Really Glaring Mistakes Detained Him At The Bank Till Late

At Night. It Was Twelve O'clock When He Finally Reached Home,  Ascended

To His Room,  And Began To Undress. He Had Thrown Off His Coat,  When He

Heard Voices And Movements In The Nursery Adjoining His Room. At Once

He Was All Attention. He Had His Usual Overpowering Yearning To See

His Child. It Was As If The Touch Of The Boy's Little Hand Or A Glance

From His Innocent Young Eyes Might Mildly Soothe His Lacerated

Spirits. It Was The Cry Of Kindred Blood To Kindred Blood From The

Darkest Deeps Of Despair--The Incongruous Cry Of Parent To Offspring.

He Overheard The Impatient Tone Of The Drowsy Nurse,  And The Fainter,

Rather Rambling Accents Of The Child.

"You Go To Sleep!" Hilda Called Out. "You'll Disturb Yo' Pa. He Just

Come Home,  An' He Don't Want No Noise Fum Yo' This Time O' Night."

The Gas Was Burning In The Nursery,  As Was Shown By The Pencil Of

Light Beneath The Door. Mostyn Turned The Bolt And Looked Into The

Room. A Breath Of Warmer Air Told Him That The Servant Had Again

Neglected To Open The Windows Sufficiently. He Went To Dick's Little

Bed,  Turning The Overhead Gas Higher As He Did So. The Child Looked

Up,  Recognized Him,  And With A Cry Of Welcome Held Out His