"Not for worlds," she had answered. "I should never think well of myself again."Her mother had changed her own mind more than once as to the conduct in this matter which might be best for her to follow, thinking solely of her daughter's welfare. "If he comes they will be reconciled, and she will be happy," had been her first idea. But then there was a stern fixedness of purpose in Bessy's words when she spoke of Mr. Holmes, which had expelled this hope, and Mrs.
Garrow had for a while thought it better that the young man should not come. But Bessy would not permit this. It would vex her father, put out of course the arrangements of other people, and display weakness on her own part. He should come, and she would endure without flinching while the fox gnawed at her.
That battle of the mistletoe had been fought on the morning before Christmas-day, and the Holmeses came on Christmas-eve. Isabella was comparatively a stranger, and therefore received at first the greater share of attention. She and Elizabeth had once seen each other, and for the last year or two had corresponded, but personally they had never been intimate. Unfortunately for the latter, that story of Godfrey's offer and acceptance had been communicated to Isabella, as had of course the immediately subsequent story of their separation. But now it would be almost impossible to avoid the subject in conversation. "Dearest Isabella, let it be as though it had never been," she had said in one of her letters. But sometimes it is very difficult to let things be as though they had never been.
The first evening passed over very well. The two Coverdale girls were there, and there had been much talking and merry laughter, rather juvenile in its nature, but on the whole none the worse for that. Isabella Holmes was a fine, tall, handsome girl; good-humoured, and well disposed to be pleased; rather Frenchified in her manners, and quite able to take care of herself. But she was not above round games, and did not turn up her nose at the boys.
Godfrey behaved himself excellently, talking much to the Major, but by no means avoiding Miss Garrow. Mrs. Garrow, though she had known him since he was a boy, had taken an aversion to him since he had quarrelled with her daughter; but there was no room on this first night for showing such aversion, and everything went off well.
"Godfrey is very much improved," the Major said to his wife that night.
"Do you think so?"
"Indeed I do. He has filled out and become a fine man.""In personal appearance, you mean. Yes, he is well-looking enough.""And in his manner, too. He is doing uncommonly well in Liverpool, I can tell you; and if he should think of Bessy--""There is nothing of that sort," said Mrs. Garrow.
"He did speak to me, you know,--two years ago. Bessy was too young then, and so indeed was he. But if she likes him--""I don't think she does."
"Then there's an end of it." And so they went to bed.
"Frank," said the sister to her elder brother, knocking at his door when they had all gone up stairs, "may I come in,--if you are not in bed?""In bed," said he, looking up with some little pride from his Greek book; "I've one hundred and fifty lines to do before I can get to bed. It'll be two, I suppose. I've got to mug uncommon hard these holidays. I have only one more half, you know, and then--""Don't overdo it, Frank."
"No; I won't overdo it. I mean to take one day a week, and work eight hours a day on the other five. That will be forty hours a week, and will give me just two hundred hours for the holidays. Ihave got it all down here on a table. That will be a hundred and five for Greek play, forty for Algebra--" and so he explained to her the exact destiny of all his long hours of proposed labour. He had as yet been home a day and a half, and had succeeded in drawing out with red lines and blue figures the table which he showed her. "If I can do that, it will be pretty well; won't it?""But, Frank, you have come home for your holidays,--to enjoy yourself?""But a fellow must work now-a-days."
"Don't overdo it, dear; that's all. But, Frank, I could not rest if I went to bed without speaking to you. You made me unhappy to-day.""Did I, Bessy?"
"You called me a Puritan, and then you quoted that ill-natured French proverb at me. Do you really believe your sister thinks evil, Frank?" and as she spoke she put her arm caressingly round his neck.
"Of course I don't."
"Then why say so? Harry is so much younger and so thoughtless that I can bear what he says without so much suffering. But if you and Iare not friends I shall be very wretched. If you knew how I have looked forward to your coming home!""I did not mean to vex you, and I won't say such things again.""That's my own Frank. What I said to mamma, I said because Ithought it right; but you must not say that I am a Puritan. I would do anything in my power to make your holidays bright and pleasant.
I know that boys require so much more to amuse them than girls do.
Good night, dearest; pray don't overdo yourself with work, and do take care of your eyes."So saying she kissed him and went her way. In twenty minutes after that, he had gone to sleep over his book; and when he woke up to find the candle guttering down, he resolved that he would not begin his measured hours till Christmas-day was fairly over.