And now that you know the parties in question, what have you to say ?" Miriam's blood began to glow a little, and as she gazed out of the open door without looking at anything, her eyes grew very bright.

In her loneliness, she had been wishing that Dora Bannister would drive in at the gate, and here was a chance to have a very different sort of a girl drive in--a girl to whom she had taken a great fancy, although she had seen her for so short a time.
"Would they want to stay long ?" she asked, without turning her head.
The doctor saw his opportunity and embraced it.
"That would be your affair entirely," he said.

"If they came for only a week, it would be to you no more than a visit from friends, and to breathe this pure country air, for even that time, would be a great pleasure and advantage to them both." Miriam turned her bright eyes on her brother.
"What do you say, Ralph ?" she asked.
The lord of Cobhurst, who had allowed his sister to tell of the visit of the Dranes, had been thinking what a wonderful piece of good luck it would have been, if, instead of these strangers, Dora Bannister and her family had desired to find quarters in a pleasant country house for a few summer weeks.

He did not know her family, nor did he allow himself to consider the point that said family was accustomed to an expensive style of living and accommodation, entirely unlike anything to be found on a ramshackle farm.

He only thought how delightful it would be if it were Dora who wanted to come to Cobhurst.
As Ralph looked upon the animated face of his sister, it was easy enough to see that the case as presented by the doctor interested her very much, and that she was awaiting his answer with an eagerness that somewhat surprised him.
"And you, little one, would you like to have these ladies come to us ?" "Yes, I would," said Miriam, and then she stopped.