“Would you mind telling me what you’d say?” asked Jo more respectfully.

“Not at all.  You are sixteen now, quite old enough to be my confident, and my experience will be useful to you by-and-by, perhaps, in your own affairs of this sort.”

“Don’t mean to have any.  It’s fun to watch other people philander, but I should feel like a fool doing it myself,” said Jo, looking alarmed at the thought.

“I think not, if you liked anyone very much, and he liked you.”  Meg spoke as if to herself, and glanced out at the lane where she had often seen lovers walking together in the summer twilight.

“I thought you were going to tell your speech to that man,” said Jo, rudely shortening her sister’s little reverie.

“Oh, I should merely say, quite calmly and decidedly, ’Thank you, Mr. Brooke, you are very kind, but I agree with Father that I am too young to enter into any engagement at present, so please say no more, but let us be friends as we were.’”

“Hum, that’s stiff and cool enough!  I don’t believe you’ll ever say it, and I know he won’t be satisfied if you do.  If he goes on like the rejected lovers in books, you’ll give in, rather than hurt his feelings.”

“No, I won’t.  I shall tell him I’ve made up my mind, and shall walk out of the room with dignity.”

Meg rose as she spoke, and was just going to rehearse the dignified exit, when a step in the hall made her fly into her seat and begin to sew as fast as if her life depended on finishing that particular seam in a given time.  Jo smothered a laugh at the sudden change, and when someone gave a modest tap, opened the door with a grim aspect which was anything but hospitable.

“Good afternoon.  I came to get my umbrella, that is, to see how your father finds himself today,” said Mr. Brooke, getting a trifle confused as his eyes went from one telltale face to the other.

“It’s very well, he’s in the rack.  I’ll get him, and tell it you are here.”  And having jumbled her father and the umbrella well together in her reply, Jo slipped out of the room to give Meg a chance to make her speech and air her dignity.  But the instant she vanished, Meg began to sidle toward the door, murmuring . . .

“Mother will like to see you.  Pray sit down, I’ll call her.”

“Don’t go.  Are you afraid of me, Margaret?” and Mr. Brooke looked so hurt that Meg thought she must have done something very rude.  She blushed up to the little curls on her forehead, for he had never called her Margaret before, and she was surprised to find how natural and sweet it seemed to hear him say it.  Anxious to appear friendly and at her ease, she put out her hand with a confiding gesture, and said gratefully . . .

“How can I be afraid when you have been so kind to Father?  I only wish I could thank you for it.”

“Shall I tell you how?” asked Mr. Brooke, holding the small hand fast in both his own, and looking down at Meg with so much love in the brown eyes that her heart began to flutter, and she both longed to run away and to stop and listen.