I have turned out that light lots of times, but I felt it best to let Tom see me in a full light when we were alone.  It is well I did!  At first it stunned him—­and it is a compliment to any woman to stun Tom Pollard.  But Tom doesn’t stay stunned long.

“Molly,” he said, standing off and looking at me with shining eyes, “you are one lovely dream.  Your cheeks are peaches under cream, your eyes are blue forget-me-nots, and your mouth a red blossom.  Come on before I lose my head looking at you.”  I didn’t know whether I liked that or not, and turned down the light quickly myself and went to the gate hurriedly.  Tom laughed and behaved himself.

Everybody in town was at the hotel, and everybody was nice to me, girls and all.  There is a bunch of lovely posy girls in this town, and they were all in full flower.  Most of the men were a few years younger than I. I have been friends with them for always, and they know how I dance.  I didn’t even get near enough to the wall to know it was there, though I was conscious of Aunt Bettie and Mrs. Johnson sitting on it at one end of the room, and every time I passed them I flirted with them until I won a smile from them both.  I wish I could be sure of hearing Mrs. Johnson tell Aunt Adeline all about it.

And it was well I did come to save Ruth Clinton from a dancing death, for she is as light as a feather and sails on the air like thistle-down.  I felt sorry for Tom, for when he was with me he could see her, and when he was with her I pouted at him, even over Judge Wade’s arm.  I verily believe it was from being really jealous that he asked little Pet Buford to dance with him—­by mistake as it were.

And how I did enjoy it all, every single minute of it!  My heart beat time to the music as if it would never tire of doing so.  Miss Clinton and I exchanged little laughs and scraps of conversation in between times, and I fell deeper and deeper in love with her.  Every pound I have melted and frozen and starved off me has brought me nearer to her, and I just can’t think about how I am going to hurt her in a few days now.  I put the thought from me, and so let myself swing out into thoughtlessness with one of the boys.

This has been a happy night, in which I betrothed myself to Alfred, though he doesn’t know it yet.  I am going to take it as a sign that life for us is going to be brilliant and gay, and full of laughter and love.

I haven’t had Billy in my arms to-day, and I don’t know how I shall ever get myself to sleep if I let myself think about it.  His sleep-place on my breast aches.  It is a comfort to think that the great big God understands the women folk that He makes, even if they don’t understand themselves.

Leaf VI.

Conflagration.

Most parties are just bunches of selfish people who go off in the corners and have good times all by themselves; but in Hillsboro it is not that way.  Everybody that is not invited helps the hostess get ready and have nice things for the others, and sometimes I think they really have the best time of all.