He sprang to his feet and watched it eagerly; and yet when
that faint column grew more dim and finally faded, he sat back
constrained to confess that he was almost glad the course of the
steamship was as it was. He fought against it, thinking of the girl in
the cabin and her interests. And yet--and yet? He shrugged his
shoulders and walked toward the door, lured by the song which he
remembered so clearly.
"If I had you! If I had you! You!"
"Will _I_ do?" he laughed, peering in at her open door.
"For the present, yes," she bowed, "because I want you to admire. See,
I have been decorating my room with unbleached muslin. Aren't those
curtains dear? And those silesia bunk tapestries, aren't they
fascinating?"
"They are, indeed. How much would you charge to beautify my cabin?"
Virginia blushed.
"You had better ask how much you owe me," she said. Then, "You haven't
looked in your cabin! And after all my labor, too!"
With an exclamation Dan darted across the corridor and beheld, with
kindling eyes, many evidences of that feminine touch without which
hardened bachelors may fancy their quarters complete. She had followed
him to the door and was gazing over his shoulder. Something caught in
Dan's throat. Always a man's man, as the saying is, the full force of
the realization of his strange situation seemed rushing from the
interior of that cabin to overpower him.
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