Stella Rosevelt — page 387: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

STEILA’S MENTAL AGONY. 381 not let him explain his position to her when he had begged so earnestly to do so? She felt as if she could not bear to remain hire ale longed to go away by herself until she could get a little more calm; and, seeing that Mr. Rosevelt and Ralph were deeply engaged in conversation, she slipped away unobserved to a small ante- room, which connected the drawing-room with the conserva- tory, and which she saw was at that moment empty. Here she sat down in a chair near a large urn filled with flowers, which stood on one side of the door leading into the conservatory, and fell to musing sadly upon her broken hopes. She had not been there long when she was aroused by hear- ing a gay laugh ring out close at hand. She started as if some viper had stung her. She knew that sound but too well, and, looking up, she saw Josephine Richards, or Lady Carrol, as she believed her to be, standing almost beside her. She was just upon the threshold and was looking back into the conservatory, from which she had come, and at a couple standing there among the flowers, She had been exchanging some jesting words with them, and her laugh was in reply to some playful remark from them. She was dressed all in white; she wore it almost constantly now, for she knew she looked lovelier in it than in anything else; everybody had told her that she had never been so beau- tiful as when she had stood beside Lord Carrol during that mock ceremony. ‘There were great pearls in her hair and on her arms, and clusters of white lilacs on her bosom. Star held her breath as she looked at her, thinking that she was indeed wondrously fair, and that it was not strange that she should allure any one by her beauty; but she believed she was dressed thus because she was a bride. How bright and happy she looked, too, with the vivid GOmiicbooks (E(0)