"Not to walk about in front of automobiles."
"The rules I refer to are mainly concerned with diet and wholesome
exercise," explained Mrs. Porter. "Careful attention to them may yet
save him. His case is not hopeless. Ruth, let Mr. Winfield show you his
pictures. They are poor in many respects, but not entirely without
merit."
Ruth, meanwhile, had been sitting on the couch, listening to the
conversation without really hearing it. She was in a dreamy, contented
mood. She found herself curiously soothed by the atmosphere of the
studio, with its shaded lights and its atmosphere of peace. That was
the keynote of the place, peace.
From outside came the rumble of an elevated train, subdued and
softened, like faintly heard thunder. Somebody passed the window,
whistling. A barrier seemed to separate her from these noises of the
city. New York was very far away.
"I believe I could be wonderfully happy in a place like this," she
thought.
She became suddenly aware, in the midst of her meditations, of eyes
watching her intently. She looked up and met Kirk's.
She could read the message in them as clearly as if he had spoken it,
and she was conscious of a little thrill of annoyance at the thought of
all the tiresome formalities which must be gone through before he could
speak it. They seemed absurd.
It was all so simple.
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