‘Has she come?’
‘No, Mamma, not yet.’
‘I wish it were well over. The thought of it worries and excites me. A cushion for my back, Bella.’
And poor, peevish Mrs. Coventry sank into an easy chair with a nervous sigh and the air of a martyr, while her pretty daughter hovered about her with affectionate solicitude.
‘Who are they talking of, Lucia?’ asked the languid young man lounging on a couch near his cousin, who bent over her tapestry work with a happy smile on her usually haughty face.
‘The new governess, Miss Muir. Shall I tell you about her?’
‘No, thank you. I have an inveterate aversion to the whole tribe. I’ve often thanked heaven that I had but one sister, and she a spoiled child, so that I have escaped the infliction of a governess so long.’
‘How will you bear it now?’ asked Lucia.
‘Leave the house while she is in it.’
‘No, you won’t. You’re too lazy, Gerald, ‘ called out a younger and more energetic man, from the recess where he stood teasing his dogs.
‘I’ll give her a three days’ trial; if she proves endurable I shall not disturb myself; if, as I am sure, she is a bore, I’m off anywhere, anywhere out of her way.’