The clear cold air freshened his brain but his heart still had a dull, queer ache in it. He did a few errands, forcing himself to concentrate his mind in their accomplishment, and at last the slow-going clock-hands crawled around to half-past six.
Back in his own rooms, Bill called New York again, and asked for Patty’s number.
The connection was a good one, and he finally heard the well-beloved voice say, “Hello,—Little Billee!”
“Oh, Patty!” he cried, explosively, “oh, Patty Blossom! When will you marry me? What day? Tell me, quick!”
“No, I didn’t! I didn’t send back anything! Never mind that fool valentine business! Answer my question, quick! Sometimes they snap off the connection, and if they did _that_ I’d go wild! _When_, Patty?”
“Bless you, darling! But what day? what date? Tell me.”
“Oh, nonsense, Bill, I can’t! And this is no thing to decide over a telephone! You come up here——”
“I can’t,—not for a few days, and I’ve got to know this thing now,—see? NOW!”
“No! you may say May, but not a day later. Say your birthday, that’s in May.”
“Not for us,—it won’t be! On your birthday, then——”
“Wait a minute, Bill, what made you return my valentine?”
“_I_ didn’t! Oh, Patty, I see it,—it has just dawned on me! We sent duplicates! Where’d you get yours?”
“Yes, I see; and I got mine from—well,—I got it.”
“No matter now. I bought it and paid for it; and they chanced to be just alike! Puzzle it out at your leisure. Now, Posy-face, I’m coming to New York just as soon as I can manage it, but it may be a week or so,—I hope not, I hope to get there in a couple of days, but all I can say is, I’ll do the best I can, and you begin to get ready for that May affair.”
“Oh, why? _why_ not May? Well, wait till I see you, and perhaps I can persuade you to say May.”
“Well, we’ll see, but I refuse to decide it over a telephone! Nobody _ever_ did!”
“As if that mattered! Well, you get busy with your preparations, and we’ll see——”
“Now, you must say good-bye, dear. You know this is long distance and not a local call!”
“I don’t care if it is! Tell me something,—Patty!”
“Oh, I can’t tell you _that_ at long distance!”
“No; and if I hear your voice without seeing you, much longer, I’ll go off my head! Good-bye, then, you darling, Patty Blossom,——”