It was impossible to
resist his magnetism, she thought, as she looked up into his sanguine
face, for what was it, after all, except an unaffected enjoyment of
little things, an unconquerable belief in life?
"I stopped to ask Patty about a dance," she explained. "I must go on
immediately."
He glanced at the girl a little anxiously. "Is she going to a party with
you? I am glad."
In spite of his buoyant manner, there was an abstracted look in his
eyes, as if his mind were working at a distance while he talked. After
the first minute or two Patty observed this and it helped her to make
her decision. "Are you busy, Father?" she asked. "I promised Mr. Gershom
that I would give you a message--such a silly message it is too."
"Gershom?" He repeated, and his face darkened. "What did he say to you?
No, don't go, Mrs. Page. Come into the library, and let us have the
message."
Corinna glanced uncertainly over her shoulder. "I really must be going,"
she murmured, and then yielding suddenly either to inclination or to the
pressure of Patty's hand, she crossed the threshold of the library and
walked over to the front window.
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