e my sister,' said Althea, tightening her arms.
'We will always be very near each other, Helen. It is so beautiful to
think that you brought us together, isn't it?'

Helen was forced to put the distasteful cup to her lips. 'Yes indeed,'
she said.

'He is so dear, so wonderful,' said Althea. 'There is so much more in
him than he knows himself. I want him to be a great man, Helen. I
believe he can be, don't you?'

'I've never thought of Gerald as great,' Helen replied, trying to smile.

'Ah, well, wait; you will see! I suppose it is only a woman in love with
a man who sees all his capacities. We will live here, and in London.'
Althea, while she spoke her guileless assurance, raised her head and
threw back her unbound hair, looking her full trust into Helen's eyes.
'I wouldn't care to live for more than half the year in the country, and
it wouldn't be good for Gerald. I want to do so much, Helen, to make so
many people happy, if I can. And, Helen dear,' she smiled now through
her tears, 'if only you could be one of them; if only this could mean in
some way a new opening in your life, too. One can never tell; happiness
is such an infectious thing; if you are a great deal with two very happy
people, you may catch the habit. I can't bear to think that you aren't
happy, rare and lovely person that you are. I told Gerald so to-day. I
said to him that I felt life hadn't given you any of the joy we all so
need. Helen, dear, you must find your fairy-prince. You must, you shall
fall in love, too.'

Helen controlled her face and gulped on. 'That's not so easily managed,'
she remarked. 'I've seen a good many fairy-princes in my life, and
either I haven't melted their hearts, or they haven't melted mine. We
can't all draw lucky numbers, you know; there are not enough to go
round.'

'As if anybody wouldn't fall in love with you, if you gave them the
chance,' said Althea. 'You _are_ the lucky number.'

Althea felt next day a certain tameness in the public reception of her
news. She had not intended the news to be public yet for some time.
Franklin's presence seemed to make an announcement something of an
indelicacy, but, whether through her responsibility or whether through
Gerald's, or whether through the obviousness of the situation, she found
that everybody knew. It could not make commonplace to her her own inner
joy, but she saw that to Aunt Julia, to the girls, to Lady Pickering,
and Sir Charles, her position was commonplac