Partners (22 page)

"Of course," said Rand. "You mustn't think of us now. But if there is really nothing important for you to do right away, it might be well for us to run out and do a few little things we ought to do before you leave us and we can't get away together."

His eyes sought Dale's for consent, and she joined in at once.

"Yes!" she said. "I think that would be a good idea. If we go right away we might be able to get everything done in time for you to get a good lunch before you go. Or, suppose I call down to the restaurant and have them send you up a tray at half-past twelve? How would that do? Then you can eat in quiet and be ready to go as soon as we can get back."

"All right. That will be nice," said the nurse with relief in her voice. "Then I'll have time to get the baby's bottle ready for the rest of the day, and write out the directions the doctor gave me. I suppose I ought to let the doctor know I'm going. Would you want me to ask about another nurse?"

"Well, suppose you wait till we get back," said Rand thoughtfully. "Miss Hathaway and I want to talk that matter over of course. And isn't the doctor coming around today? Wouldn't it be well for us to be here when he comes? What time does he usually arrive?"

"Yes, he's coming, and he usually gets here around one thirty or two."

"We'll try to be back. If we're not, you tell him you're going and ask his advice, and we'll call him up as soon as we get back," said Rand.

"All right," said the nurse. "You're very kind, I'm sure. Of course, you know it's rather out of order for me to leave this way without notice, but you know you can't always--"

"Of course!" smiled Dale. "It's quite all right. We'll miss you a lot, but we wouldn't have you stay away from your mother for a minute, and we're glad you can go to her."

"Well, you're
good
!" said the nurse vehemently, wiping a furtive tear from her eye. "I've seen a good many professing Christians, but I never saw one I believed in as much as I do in you two. I'm only sorry I've got to leave you, but I'll be better all my life from having known you, and that's the
truth
! I'd give a good deal if that baby was all well and not such a care to you, before I leave. But you'll get on. And anyway, I think he's pretty well over his trouble, and he'll begin to perk up and really grow in few days now. His cheeks are rounder now than when I came, and that's a great deal for him to show that, sick as he's been. But of course he's been getting his good feedings right along. Well, I'll get your bottles all ready, and I'll write out the formulas for you, and his schedule. I guess you know pretty well what it is, but it's just as well to have it in black and white if you should happen to have any question about anything. Now, you go, and don't hurry too much about getting back. I really could get my packing done if I didn't get to the boardinghouse till four, I guess. There isn't so much for me to do."

Dale smiled.

"We'll be back!" she promised happily. "Come, George, let's go. I'll be ready in just a minute." And she hurried into her room and was out again very quickly ready to go.

Do you suppose you can get hold of our minister right away?" asked Dale as they stood waiting for the elevator to come.

Rand flashed her a gorgeous look.

"You are willing then?" he asked tenderly. "You are willing to have it right away?"

"Why, yes, of course," said Dale happily. "There isn't any question, is there? It's sort of as if God ordered it this way, isn't it? We asked to be shown what was right, and of course when the nurse had to go it put the whole thing in a very different light. It was either now or wait, perhaps a long time. I can't quite see how we can do our very best for the baby unless we both work at it sometimes. Or get another nurse, and I don't see that that is necessary any longer, unless the doctor says we must."

Rand twinkled at her.

"Do I understand, Miss Hathaway, that you think it is sufficient reason for getting married, just that we may save the price of a nurse?"

She looked up in dismay and caught his merry laughter.

"You are just kidding me," she said, laughing herself with her cheeks flaming rosily. "You knew I only meant it was good reason for doing it
quickly
! That is, if we were going to do it
anyway
! But--" There was mock dismay suddenly in her voice. "Perhaps you have changed your mind and don't
want
to marry me! Is that it?"

Rand reached down and caught her hand, squeezing her fingers softly and gazing down at her with a wonderful look.

"You little witch!" he said. "Now it's you who is kidding me!" And then the elevator shot up to their level, the door slammed open, and they stepped in.

He studied her tenderly all the way downstairs, and smiled at her lifted eyes.

"How soon can you be ready?" he asked quietly, in a casual voice. He might have been asking about some everyday matter.

"Ready?" she said, and then, "
Oh
!" in great dismay. "I forgot that a bride should have gala attire. I meant to get the right kind of a dress and come to you in bridal array. But it would take time to do that, and I haven't anything that would be any more suitable that what I have on."

"That looks good enough to me," said Rand with a dear grin, giving her garments a friendly glance. "I can't see that clothes could make any difference. It's
you
I'll be marrying, not your garments. I'd rather have you now, as you are, than wait even a half hour for you to doll up. You know, it doesn't really matter what you wear. The main thing is that we shall belong to each other."

"Yes, that was my idea of course, but now I remember that you were the one who thought it important that the little boy's mother should have proper garments for her burial. You felt it would be nice for him to know afterward that she was suitably garbed. Won't this be something, too, that we ought to remember in the right way? Shouldn't I go into a shop now and get something nice, and put it on before I go to the minister's?"

"Look here, lady, that's not a parallel case. You're not on the same level as that little unknown dead mother. You'll be my wife and it will be your face I'll remember, not your clothes, you know. And besides, if you feel sensitive about it, lady, you can go at your leisure and buy a nice wedding dress and put it carefully away in mothballs and perfumery and label it 'Wedding Dress.' Then when we have anniversaries you can get it out and wear it, and really enjoy it. But just now it does seem as if we're rather hurried, doesn't it?"

She gave a little laugh.

"That's what I must have thought, I guess. I was just aiming to get the ceremony part over so that we would have a right to go on and take care of the baby as we saw necessary without any Mrs. Becks having anything to say!"

"That's the spirit!" said Rand happily. "We'll attend to all the doodads you want after we get that little kid on his way to health, but just now we're concerned only with forms and ceremonies before God, and critical gossips, aren't we?"

"That's it," said Dale. "Oh, it's going to be wonderful that you will understand!"

Another glowing look carried them out into the bright sunlight on the snow, into the crisp frosty air.

"I'll hope I'll always understand," said Rand in the tone with which one utters a sweet vow. "Now, shall we drop into this drugstore while I telephone?"

So Rand stepped into a telephone booth, and Dale realized that she held in her hand a letter and brought her attention to it.

It was from the bank asking her to step in that day and take over the money that had been deposited in her name, and she came to herself sufficiently to gasp over the amount. $12,780.50. The figures danced before her eyes and meant nothing to her. If she had been made to say at that moment what that amount was she might have answered, "Twelve dollars and seventy-five cents," so utterly confused was her mind, so entirely filled with other matters. Money, which had been the chief concern of her weary days so long, had withdrawn from its important position, into the background. Money wasn't as important as she had so long thought it was.

She folded the letter absentmindedly and put it in her purse, registering only that she must stop at the bank and get that money settled. Perhaps she might want to use it sometime soon, and it had better be fixed right away. Then she turned brightly toward Rand as he came shining from the telephone booth.

"He's there!" he said eagerly. "He says it's all right for us to come at once. Did you really mean that you were wanting to go at once? You don't have to do anything first?"

"No! Oh--! Why, perhaps I ought to stop at the bank for a minute! It's right on the way. But if you think it would be better later it can wait, I guess. I had a letter from them asking me to step in. It's about a deposit that was made by my old uncle years ago--I don't suppose it's very important."

"Well, it won't be difficult to stop a minute or two and get it out of the way," said Rand. "But if it's a question of money, don't worry about money. I've got enough to see us through."

She smiled happily and they got into the taxi and went to the bank.

"What is this business at the bank?" he asked as they settled down in the taxi. "Anything you need my help with?"

"No, I guess not. Well, that is, I don't really know. I got a letter from a lawyer out west saying an old uncle of mine had put a small sum of money in the bank for me the day I was born, which was to be handed over to me when I came of age. I think I have that letter in my purse. Yes, here it is. There were some papers of identification I had to sign."

She handed the letter over to Rand.

He read it swiftly and then looked up.

"How much money?" he asked.

"Oh, why, I forget. The bank letter came this morning. Here it is. I was so busy thinking about getting married I really didn't take in how much it was."

He looked at the letter and then back to her eyes again.

"You've been holding out on me," he charged. "You're a wealthy lady, and I thought I was marrying someone rather poor. Don't you think that was taking an unfair advantage of me? Now, maybe I oughtn't to marry you. You maybe could do a lot better than to marry me."

"Oh!" she gasped. "What do you mean? I don't care for money! I'll give it all to you. I'd rather throw it away than not to have you!"

"Do you mean that, sweetheart?"

"Why, of course," she said sweetly nestling her hand in his.

"Then that's all right!" he comforted her. "We'll put your money away safely, then when you find something you want that costs more money than I have, we'll get it for you."

"Oh, no, not for me! How about the baby? Can't we use it for the baby?"

"Well, that's a thought. Keep it to send him to college? But we mustn't let him know it, or he'll get his head turned sure. Look here, when is this twenty-first birthday of yours? Can't we put this thing off a little? We don't have to go to the bank today, do we?"

"Why, no, I guess not maybe, or
do
we? What day of the month is it? The sixteenth. Why it's
today
!
This is
my birthday! Isn't that funny? I forgot all about it. You know, I've been trying ever since Mother went to heaven to forget when my birthday came because it was so lonesome all alone."

"Well, it's not going to be lonesome for you anymore, sweetheart, if I help it!" said Rand holding her hand tightly and smiling into her eyes.

"You can!" said Dale softly. "Oh, yes, you can!"

"That's good!" said Rand. "And thank the Lord we'll soon be in a position to talk a little about all this without the danger of the world listening in on us. Yes, Driver, this is the place! Right here, First National. Do you want me to go in with you, Dale?"

"Of course," she said gladly, realizing how wonderful it was going to be to have someone always belonging again.

The business transacted and all papers duly signed, Dale introduced Rand to John Ward, the friendly teller. Ward acknowledged the introduction pleasantly, with a sudden keen look at Rand and then a smile.

"There's been another friend of yours in here this morning asking for you, Miss Hathaway," said the teller. "A Mr. Arliss Webster. He seemed to know you would be coming in here today and said he especially wanted to see you. He waited some time for you, and when he went out said he would be back again. I think he said he was your fiancé, thought he looked rather older than you are. Perhaps I was mistaken." He gave another keen look at Rand with a puzzled expression on his brow.

Suddenly Dale laughed a clear little sweet laugh like a chime of jubilant bells.

"No, Mr. Ward, he's not my fiancé, because Mr. Rand is that. You must have misunderstood him."

Ward's brow cleared.

"Oh, doubtless!" he said as if the matter was explained. "He must have said he was expecting you with your fiancé." He gave a congratulatory bow toward Rand.

Rand thanked him and grinned.

"Oh, was that 'Artless'?" he twinkled, looking at Dale. "Perhaps we'd better beat it then! It's getting late, you know."

"Yes," said Dale, sweetly smiling. "If he comes in again, Mr. Ward, you might tell him that we were in a hurry and couldn't wait. Thank you!" And they hurried away.

Back in the taxi they kept as much out of sight as possible, giggling together over their escape.

"You don't suppose Artless is going to keep this up indefinitely after we're married, do you, sweetheart? I might have to wallop him after all if he gets troublesome."

Then they arrived at the plain little chapel where they found the minister waiting for them, and Arliss Webster was forgotten.

It was plain enough as a chapel, in its simple architecture, but it was not entirely cheerless, for the young people of the congregation had been garlanding the walls with evergreens for the coming Christmas celebration, and resinous hemlock trees stood about the pulpit in all their unadorned simplicity of loveliness. The minister, whose name was Harvey Blessing, had got his wise young wife to arrange Christmas roses, crimson and white, in a crystal bowl on the pulpit.