looked straight at him and laughed and said, "You'd be a brave man to say no when Antonia takes that tone."
"I should be worse than brave--I should be a liar," said Anthony.
The sentiment, which brought a lovely beam from Pearl, brought him a dark glance from his sister. She thought it was not like Anthony to be silly about a woman, and then the encouraging idea occurred to her that he was luring her on in order to win her confidence--clever creature that he was.
As soon as dinner was over the children rushed away to feed Horatius; and Edna, who felt the need of uninterrupted conversation with her brother, led him across the lawn to Miss Wellington's house. It was not easy, for he showed the same reluctance to go that people show toward leaving a wood fire on a cold day; but when Miss Exeter--who, of course, everyone knew wasn't Miss Exeter--said she had a letter to write he rose to his feet.
"A letter?" he said, the idea being, of course, that now he was at home, there could be no more letters in the world.
Pearl nodded. It really was important, for she had always promised Augusta to write her a full account of the first meeting with her respected employer; and, as a matter of fact, Pearl was bursting with eagerness to express her emotion to someone. If she wrote at once the letter could be posted that evening, when, about nine o'clock, a man came to deliver and receive mail.