FREE BOOKS

Author's List




PREV.   NEXT  
|<   23   24   25   26   27   28   29   30   31   32   33   34   35   36   37   38   39   40   41   42   43   44   45   46   47  
48   49   >>  
oy in her pure respect and friendship for Bailey. He came in cheerily, his hearty voice ringing with health and good-will. He took her hand in his with a quick, strong grip, and the light of his brown eyes brought a glow to her heart. "I've come over to see if you don't want to go to the city to-morrow? I've got Joe Pease to stay in the store, and so I thought I'd take an outing." Burke looked at his wife; she replied, eagerly: "I should like to go, Mr. Bailey, very much. Our old team is so feeble we daren't drive so far. I'm afraid every time old Dick stumbles he'll fall down on the road." "We'll have to get back to-morrow night," Burke said. "Oh, we'll do that all right," replied Bailey. As she planned the trip with tremulous eagerness, Bailey studied her. She was paler than he had ever seen her, and more refined and thoughtful, scarcely recognizable as the high-colored, powerful woman for whom he had helped build the shanty in March. There were times now when it seemed as if she were appealing to him, and his heart ached with undefined sorrow as he looked about her prison-like home. For half an hour she chatted with something of her old-time vivacity, but when he went out her face resumed its gloomy lines, and she silenced her husband with a glance when he attempted to keep up the cheerful conversation. The next morning, as she was dressing, she turned sick and faint for a moment. Her breath seemed to fail her, and she sat down, dizzy and weak. She was alone, but the red blood came swelling back into her face as she waited. She grew better soon, and rose and went about her work. Then the excitement and pleasure of her trip, the expectation of meeting Rivers, helped her to put her weakness away. Bailey called for the Clayton girls, who were making their monthly visit to their claim, and Mrs. Burke, seeing the shine of a lover's joy in Bailey's face, and the clear, unwavering trust of a pure, good girl in Estelle's gray eyes, fell silent, and the shadow of her own sorrow came back upon her face. The ride seemed short, and the town at the end wondrously exciting. Rivers met them at the hotel, and insisted on their being his guests during their stay. They had a jolly supper together, after which they all went to the little town-hall to see a play. Blanche sat beside Rivers, and as she laughed at Si Peasley and his misadventures in the city she was girlishly happy. It was not very much of an en
PREV.   NEXT  
|<   23   24   25   26   27   28   29   30   31   32   33   34   35   36   37   38   39   40   41   42   43   44   45   46   47  
48   49   >>  



Top keywords:

Bailey

 
Rivers
 
looked
 

helped

 
replied
 
sorrow
 
morrow
 

conversation

 

expectation

 

pleasure


excitement
 

morning

 

cheerful

 

husband

 
meeting
 
attempted
 

glance

 

weakness

 

moment

 
breath

called
 

swelling

 

turned

 

dressing

 
waited
 

Estelle

 

supper

 
insisted
 

guests

 
girlishly

misadventures
 

Peasley

 

Blanche

 

laughed

 

exciting

 
making
 

monthly

 

unwavering

 

wondrously

 
shadow

silenced

 

silent

 

Clayton

 

shanty

 
eagerly
 

outing

 

thought

 
stumbles
 

afraid

 

feeble