"I suppose," Don Joaquin remarked in a disengaged manner, "that, after
all your preparations, we can fix the day for our wedding any time now."
Sarella was not in the least taken in by his elaborate air of having
been able, for _his_ part, to have fixed a day long ago.
It was, however, part of her system to fall in with people's whimsies
when nothing was to be gained by opposing or exposing them.
"Oh, yes," she agreed, most amiably. "It will take three Sundays to
publish the banns--any day after that. Meanwhile I should be received.
Sister Aquinas says I am ready. As soon as we have settled the exact
time, we must let Mariquita know, and you can, when the time comes, go
over and fetch her home."
Don Joaquin consented, and Sarella thought she would go and deliver
Mariquita's message to Jack and his daughter. She found them together
and began by saying, smilingly:
"I expect you have known for a long while that there was a marriage in
the air?"
Old Jack had not learned to like her, and Ginger still disliked her
smile.
"I don't believe," she said perversely, for, of course, both she and her
father understood perfectly, "that Miss Mariquita is going to be
married. She's not that way."
This was a discouraging opening, for it seemed to cast a sort of slur on
young women who _were_ likely to be married.
"Mr. Gore's never asked again!" cried Jack.
"Dad, don't you be silly," Ginger suggested; "everyone knows Miss
Mariquita wants to be a nun."
"Yes," said Sarella with impregnable amiability, "but we can't all be
nuns. Miss Mariquita doesn't seem to think _you_ likely to be one. She
sent me back by her father such a nice letter. She sends Jack and you
her love, and, though she doesn't send Larry Burke her love, thinking of
you evidently makes her think of him."
Ginger visibly relaxed, and her father stared appallingly with his one
eye.
"Good Lord!" quoth he in more sincere than flattering astonishment.
"Well, he is good," Ginger observed cooly, "and there's worse folk than
Larry Burke, or me either."
"Miss Mariquita thinks it would be such a good thing for him," Sarella
reported. "So must any one."
Ginger felt that this, after her unpleasantness to the young lady who
brought the message, was handsome.
"He might do better," she declared, "and he might do worse."
"Has he _said_ anything?" her father inquired with undisguised
incredulity.
"What he's said is nothing," Ginger calmly replied. "It's what I think
as matters. He's no Cressote, but he's got a bit--or ought, if he hasn't
spent it. I'd keep his money together for him, and he'd soon find it a
saving. And I could do with him--for if his head's soft so's his heart.
I think, Dad," she concluded, willing "to take it out" of her father
for his unflattering incredulity, "you may as well, when Miss Sarella's
gone, tell him to step round. I'll soon fix it."
"I couldn't do that," Jack expostulated.
"Why not?" Ginger demanded with fell determination.
"I really don't see why you shouldn't," Sarella protested, much amused
though not betraying it. "It's all for his good," she added seriously.
Jack was shaken, but not yet disposed to obedience.
"Larry," Sarella urged, "won't be so much surprised as you think. Miss
Mariquita, you see, wants him and Ginger to make a match of it--"
"But does _he_?" Jack pleaded, moved by Mariquita's opinion, but not so
sure it would reduce Larry to subjection.
"Tut!" said Ginger impatiently. "What's _he_ to do with it? If he don't
know what's best for him, I do. So does Miss Sarella. So does Miss
Mariquita."
"And," Sarella added, "you may be sure Miss Mariquita would never have
said a word about it if she hadn't felt pretty sure it was to come off.
She's never been one to be planning marriages. Why, Larry must have made
it as plain as a pikestaff that he was ready, or she would never have
guessed it."
The weight of this argument left Jack defenseless.
"Hadn't you better wait, Ginger," he attempted to argue with shallow
subtlety; "he's like enough to step round after supper. Then I'd clear,
and you could say when you liked."
"No," Ginger decided, "I'm tired of him stepping round after supper,
just to chatter. He'd be prepared if you told him I'd said he was to
come. He'd know something was wanted. In fact, you'd better tell him."
"Tell him? Me? Tell him what?"
"Just that I'd made up my mind to say 'yes' if he'd a question to ask
me."
"Why," cried Jack, aghast, "he'd get on his horse and scoot."
"Not far," Ginger opined, entirely unmoved. "He'd ride back. He's not
pluck enough to be such a coward as to scoot for good. Just you try."
The two women drove the battered old fellow off, Ginger laughed and
said:
"Aren't men helpless?"
Sarella was full of admiration of her prowess.
"Well, _you're_ not," she said.
"Not me. But, Dad won't find Larry as much surprised as he thinks. It's
been in the silly chap's head (or where folks keep their ideas that have
no head) this three weeks. _I_ saw, though he never said a lot--"
Overpowered by curiosity, Sarella asked boldly what he did say.
"Oh, just rubbish," Ginger answered laughing; "you're as clean as a
tablet of scented soap, anyway," says he, first. Then he said, "Ginger,
I've known pretty girls with hair not near so nice as yours--not a
quarter so much of it." Another time he asked if I kept a tooth-brush.
"I thought so," says he, quite loving; "your teeth's as white as nuts
with the brown skin off, and as regular as a row of tombstones in an
undertaker's window. I never _did_ mind freckles as true as I stand
here ..." and stuff like that. But the strongest ever he said was,
"Pastry! What's pastry when a woman don't know how to make it. I'd as
soon eat second-hand toast. Yours, Ginger, is like what the angels make,
_I_ should say, at Thanksgiving for the little angels.'"
"Did he, really!" said Sarella, feeling quite sure that Larry would not
"scoot."
"I told him," Ginger explained calmly, that if he didn't quit such
senseless talk _he'd_ never get any more of my pastry. He looked so down
that I gave him a slice of pumpkin pie when he was leaving. "The
pastry," says I, "will mind you of me, and the pumpkin of yourself." But
he got his own back, for he just grinned and said, "Yes, I'll think o'
them together, Ginger, for the pie and the pumpkin belongs together,
don't they?"
Sarella laughed and expressed her belief that after all Jack's embassy
was rather superfluous.
"Maybe so. But I knew he'd hate it, and he deserved it for seeming so
unbelieving. If my mother had been _lovely_ I'd have been born plain;
it's not _him_ as should think me too ugly for any young fellow to
fancy. I daresay I shouldn't have decided to take Larry if Miss
Mariquita hadn't sent that message. I was afraid she'd think me a fool.
Here's Larry coming round the corner, looking as if he'd been stealing
his mother's sugar."
"He's only thinking of your pastry," said Sarella. "I'll slip off. May I
be told when it's all settled?"
"Yes, certainly, Miss Sarella, and I'm sure I wish all that's best to
the Boss and yourself. It's not everyone could manage him, but _you_
will. Poor Miss Mariquita never could. She was too good."
With these mixed compliments Sarella had to content herself.