David and sat on the floor beside him, pulling his
hand from beneath the cover and kissing the white, blue-veined fingers.
She crooned and gurgled over him as a mother over a little child, but
did not speak until at last he turned to her and said abruptly:

"Carol, won't you go home until I get well? Please dear, for my sake."

Carol kissed the thumb once more and frowned at him. "You want to
flirt with the nurses when you get out there, and are trying to get me
out of the road. Every one says nurses are dangerous."

"Carol, please."

"Mrs. Sater has been talking to you. Oh, I knew it. She is a nice,
kind, Christian woman, and loves us both, but, David, why doesn't God
teach some people to mind their own business? She is a good Christian,
I know, dear, but I do believe there is still a little work of grace to
be done in her."

David smiled a little, sadly.

"Carol, it would break my heart if you got this from me."

"I won't get it. They will teach us how to be careful and sanitary,
and take proper precautions, and things like that. I am going to be
very, very careful. Why, honey, I won't get it. But, David, I would
rather get it than go away and leave you. I couldn't do that. I
should never be happy again if I left you when you were needing me."

David turned his face to the wall. "Maybe, dear," he said very gently,
"maybe it would be better if you did go home,--better for me. I need
perfect rest you know, and we talk and laugh so much and have such good
times together. I don't know, possibly I might get well faster--alone."

For a long moment Carol gazed at him in horror. "David," she gasped.
"Don't say that. Dear, I will go home if it makes you worse to have
me. I will do anything. I only want to help you. But I will be very
nice and quiet, like a mouse, and never say a word, and not laugh once,
if you take me with you. David, do I make you feel sicker? Does my
chatter weary you? I thought I was helping to amuse you."

"Carol, I can't lie like that even to send you away from me. Maybe I
ought to, but I can't. Why, sweetheart, you are the only thing left in
the world. You are the world to me now. Dear, I said it for your
sake, not for mine, Carol, never for mine."

Slowly the smiles struggled through the anguish in her face, and she
resumed her kissing of his fingers.

"Silly old goose," she murmured; "big old silly goose. Just because
he's a preacher he wants to boss all the ti