forgotten--and he said he was coming up to help," observed Laura,
and at once Aunt Wess' smiled. Landry Court was openly and
strenuously in love with Laura, and no one of the new household
ignored the fact. Aunt Wess' chose to consider the affair as
ridiculous, and whenever the subject was mentioned spoke of Landry
as "that boy."

Page, however, bridled with seriousness as often as the matter came
up. Yes, that was all very well, but Landry was a decent,
hard-working young fellow, with all his way to make and no time to
waste, and if Laura didn't mean that it should come to anything it
wasn't very fair to him to keep him dangling along like that.

"I guess," Laura was accustomed to reply, looking significantly at
Aunt Wess', "that our little girlie has a little bit of an eye on a
certain hard-working young fellow herself." And the answer
invariably roused Page.

"Now, Laura," she would cry, her eyes snapping, her breath coming
fast. "Now, Laura, that isn't right at all, and you know I don't
like it, and you just say it because you know it makes me cross. I
won't have you insinuate that I would run after any man or care in
the least whether he's in love or not. I just guess I've got some
self-respect; and as for Landry Court, we're no more nor less than
just good friends, and I appreciate his business talents and the way
he rustles 'round, and he merely respects me as a friend, and it
don't go any farther than that. 'An eye on him,' I do declare! As
if I hadn't yet to see the man I'd so much as look at a second
time."