"Kit!" he called after me appealingly, but I would not hear. Then he
adopted different tactics. He took advantage of my catching my foot in
the lace of my gown to pass me, and to stand with his back against the
door.
"You're not going until you hear me, Kit," he declared miserably. "In
the first place, for all you are down on me, is it my fault? Honestly,
now IS IT MY FAULT?"
I refused to speak.
"I was coming home to be miserable alone," he went on, "and--oh, I know
you meant well, Kit; but YOU asked all these crazy people here."
"Perhaps you will give me credit for some things," I said wearily. "I
did NOT give Takahiro smallpox, for instance, and--if you will permit me
to mention the fact--Aunt Selina is not MY Aunt Selina."
"That's what I wanted to speak to you about," Jimmy went on wretchedly,
trying not to look at me. "You see, when they were rowing so about who
would get the breakfast--I never saw such a lot of people; half of
them never touch breakfast, but of course now they want all kinds of
things--when they were talking, Aunt Selina said she knew YOU would get
it, being the hostess, and responsible, besides knowing where things
are kept." He had fixed his eyes on the orchids, and he looked shrunken,
actually shrunken. "I thought," he finished, "you might give me a few
pointers now, and I could come down in the morning, and--and fuss up
something, coffee and so on. I would say you did it! Oh, hang it all,
Kit, why don't you say something?"
"What do you want me to say?" I demanded. "That I love to cook, and of
course I'll fix trays and carry them up in the morning to Anne Brown
and Leila Mercer and the rest; and that I will have the shaving water
ready--"
"I know what I'm going to do," Jimmy said, with a sudden resolution.
"Aunt Selina and her money can go to blazes. I am going right upstairs
and tell her the truth, tell her who you are, what I am, and all the
rest of it." He opened the door.
"You'll do nothing of the kind," I gasped, catching him in time. "Don't
you dare, Jimmy Wilson! Why, what would they think of me? After letting
her call me Bella, and him--Jim, if Mr. Harbison ever learns the
truth--I--I will take poison. If we are going to be shut up here
together, we will have to carry it on. I couldn't stand the disgrace."
In spite of an heroic effort, Jim looked relieved. "They have been
hunting for the linen closet," he said, more cheerfully, "and there will
be room enough, I think. Harbison and I will hang out in the studio;
there are two couches there. I'm afraid you'll have to take Aunt Selina,
Kit."