Arthur was distinctly conscious that he wished she had opened some other mysterious door than his own.  What on earth should he do with a strange girl for the next hour or more?

“You’d like to go up to your room, I’m sure,” he said at last with almost a gasp of relief.  “I’ll show you,” he added, and then stopped short.  How was he going to get up those stairs again?  Would it be possible for him to make such an exhibition of himself with the eyes of a girl upon him?

“I think you’ll have to let me tell you where it is,” he said finally.  “It is the last room on the right as you go toward the back of the house, and I think you will find everything there to make you comfortable until my mother gets home.”

Ruth was rather awed by his excessive dignity, and because she was a little nervous, and tired from her long journey, felt an intense desire to laugh at him, at herself, or at nothing at all, for that matter.  She managed to restrain herself, however, and with a meek “thank you,” picked up her bag and went up-stairs.

Arthur saw her disappear with a sigh of relief.  “I’ll wait until she gets nicely settled in her room, and then I’ll crawl up-stairs,” he said to himself, dropping wearily into one of the hall chairs.  He had sat there but a moment when to his horror he heard some one coming quickly through the dining-room, and then a surprised voice said: 

“Why, Arthur!  How good it seems to see you down-stairs again!”

“Oh, hello, Betty,” answered Arthur, immensely relieved to find that it was no one more formidable.  “How did you get in?”

“I slipped in the back door and found Ellen just coming down-stairs rubbing her eyes.  She said she thought she heard the bell ring, but wasn’t sure,” finished Betty with a mischievous twinkle in her eye.  “I saw it all from my window, and knew your mother had gone in town, so I thought I’d run over and see if I could do anything for any one.”

“You’re a trump, Betty, and you can do something,” answered Arthur gratefully.  “Of course I had to ask her to go up to her room, and I was just thinking she’d be rather forlorn sitting there until mother gets here.  It will be just the thing for you to go up and talk to her.”

“Well, I will,” said Betty, and started up the stairs.  Half-way up she paused and then came back.  “I’ve got to run back home, Arthur.  There’s something I want to get before I meet Ruth, and I won’t be gone a minute.”

She was out of the house in a second, and Arthur left to himself wondered if he should have time to get up-stairs before her return.  “I should be afraid to try it,” he thought; “she’s as quick as a flash, and I should probably be stuck half-way up by the time she got back.  I’ll wait until the girls get to talking and then they won’t hear anything.”

In the meantime the pretty pink room was doing its best to make the new occupant feel at home.