Old Plympton was there, the hollow-stomached black butler, whose long-tailed coat dropped straight from the middle of his back, and flapped against the bend of his knees when he walked. His voice trembled when he greeted Miss Gail, and old Auntie Clem, who had tended Miss Gail when she was a little girl no bigger than that, and until the fancy French maid came, just politely took her young missus upstairs to her room, and took off those heavy shoes, and made her drink her thimble glass of hot-spiced port wine. It was so good to be home!
Of course her friends had piled into the house after her, a whole chattering mob of them, and, late as the hour was, Vivian Jennings opened the piano and rattled into Auld Lang Syne, which the company sang with a ringing zest! The tears filled Gail’s eyes as she listened. They were such faithful, whole-hearted people back here! It was good to go away, now and then, just for the joy of coming home again; but one should not go too often. After all, this was a better life.
Auntie Clem triumphed. She had Miss Gail all fixed up before that fancy French maid had on her trifling little cap and her hair primped. Arly, choosing Auntie Clem instantly for her personal attendant on this brief visit, naturally refused to intrude further on the home coming, and expressed herself as frantically in love with her little blue bedroom and boudoir.
When Gail went downstairs, in a comfortable little red house gown which was tremendously artful in its simplicity, she found the whole jolly company in the big dining room, where Miles Sargent had insisted on opening something in honour of the happy event. She coloured as her father turned his twinkling eyes on her, but he did not take occasion to call her a slave driver or to tease her any further about the work of art which had driven her home. She reproached herself crossly for having suspected him of such a crudity. Of course he would not do that!
They had sandwiches, and olives, and cake, and cookies—trust Mammy Emma for that—and nuts and fruit and bonbons, and coffee, and champagne. Everybody was excited, walking around with a sandwich in one hand and an olive in the other, joking with Gail, and complimenting her, and teasing her, but in every word and look and action, showing that they loved her.