12Dinner was at seven o’clock. Caroline descended at a few minutes to the hour, wearing a gown of blue gauze sprinkled with stars which she felt was a singularly appropriate garment in which to pursue her plans for the evening.
As she had anticipated, her trunks had arrived from Mandrake late in the afternoon and the swansdown muff was included among the clothes Maria was packing for Harriet. The coach had also brought a long and hysterical letter from Mrs. Edgmont. Caroline had perused two or three of the closely written pages and then flung the letter aside with impatience.
She had expected Cousin Debby to be in a consternation at the thought of her marriage, but it seemed to Caroline at this moment that there were many other more important things to consider than the mere fact that a
