He bent down and put his arm about her, laying his cheek against hers.
The little red spot where his kiss had fallen was now quite drowned
out in the colour that rushed over her face.

"If you'll marry me, Alma, I'll forgive you," he said.

A little smile escaped from the duress of Alma's lips and twitched her
dimples.

"I'm willing to do anything that will win your forgiveness, Gilbert,"
she said meekly.

Aunt Caroline's Silk Dress

Patty came in from her walk to the post office with cheeks finely
reddened by the crisp air. Carry surveyed her with pleasure. Of late
Patty's cheeks had been entirely too pale to please Carry, and Patty
had not had a very good appetite. Once or twice she had even
complained of a headache. So Carry had sent her to the office for a
walk that night, although the post office trip was usually Carry's own
special constitutional, always very welcome to her after a weary day
of sewing on other people's pretty dresses.

Carry never sewed on pretty dresses for herself, for the simple reason
that she never had any pretty dresses. Carry was twenty-two--and
feeling forty, her last pretty dress had been when she was a girl of
twelve, before her father had died. To be sure, there was the silk
organdie Aunt Kathleen had sent her, but that was fit only for
parties, and Carry never went to any parties.

"Did you get any mail, Patty?" she asked unexpectantly. There was
never much mail for the Lea girls.

"Yes'm," said Patty briskly. "Here's the _Weekly Advocate_, and a
patent medicine almanac with all your dreams expounded, _and_ a letter
for Miss Carry M. Lea. It's postmarked Enfield, and has a suspiciously
matrimonial look. I'm sure it's an invitation to Chris Fairley's
wedding. Hurry up and see, Caddy."

Carry, with a little flush of excitement on her face, opened her
letter. Sure enough, it contained an invitation "to be present at the
marriage of Christine Fairley."

"How jolly!" exclaimed Patty. "Of course you'll go, Caddy. You'll have
a chance to wear that lovely organdie of yours at last."

"It was sweet of Chris to invite me," said Carry. "I really didn't
expect it."

"Well, I did. Wasn't she your most intimate friend when she lived in
Enderby?"

"Oh, yes, but it is four years since she left, and some people might
forget in four years. But I might have known Chris wouldn't. Of course
I'll go."

"And you'll make up your organdie?"

"I shall have to," laughed Carry, for