ell as purchases.
After all, he was ready long before the shutters of those attractive
plate glass windows were taken away; but he was not sorry for that. He
had the joy of walking down to the Condamine and gazing up at other
windows far more attractive, and saying to the closed green blinds,
"Merry Christmas, merry Christmas, my darling--mine for always, now!"
Then he darted back to rolls and coffee; beamed on the waiters, gave
them fat five franc pieces merely for beaming in return; and arrived in
the Galerie Charles Trois just as the shop windows were opening radiant
Christmas eyes.
The first visit he paid was to the florist's; and to save time in
choosing he simply said, "I'll take all those things you have in the
window, please."
There were about two hundred francs worth of roses, the same of white
lilacs, and enough lilies of the valley, nestling in baby leaves of
yellow green, to clean out any save a well-filled pocket book; but that
was all the better. The more he could spend to-day, the more was Hugh
Egerton pleased. He gave "Madame Clifford's" address, and wrote
something in English on his visiting card. The flowers were to go at
once; at once, mind; not in fifteen minutes, but now, this very now.
"How much in love is that handsome young Monsieur!" thought the
Mademoiselle of the shop, with a little sigh for some of the wonders of
the world which she had missed, and must always miss. Her heels were
appallingly high, and her waist was incredibly small; but she had a
heart; and there was no heart which would not have softened to Hugh, and
wished him the best of good luck, this day.
The next window which attracted the young man's eye, was one which
displayed just such a dress as he had vaguely pictured yesterday, for a
dear companion on the terrace. It was white, of course; and he was not
sure, but he thought it was made of cloth. Anyway there was a lot of
embroidery on it, full of little holes, which somehow contrived to be
extraordinarily fetching. It had a mantle which hung in soft folds,
marvellously intricate, yet simple in effect; and he could have fallen
upon the neck of the stout, powdered lady in black silk who assured him
that the costume could be worn without alteration by any "_dame de jolie
taille_."
He bought it instantly, and then seized upon precisely such a "long
white thing" of ermine as he had seen in his mind's eye. A "granny" muff
went with it. (Really the people of the shop mu
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