Page:Jean Webster--Much ado about Peter.djvu/59

Rh to get that dress done by five o'clock. Come on!" she cried, jumping to her feet. "I 'll help ye. Ye take the waist and I 'll take the skirt, an' we 'll see which one gets done first. It just needs a little rubbin' out an' we 'll iron it damp."

Five minutes later, Peter and Nora, who had been sitting on the back steps, waiting patiently for Ellen's diplomacy to bear fruit, returned to the laundry. They found Ellen at one tub and Annie at another—up to her elbows in the soap suds, her cheeks still flushed, but a smile beginning to break through.

"Ellen's helpin' me," she said in rather sheepish explanation.

"An' she's comin' over to wash the dishes for me to-night," Ellen chimed in. "We 're havin' soup, an' fish, an' roast, an'"

Peter clapped his hand over his mouth and Nora cast him a warning look.

"You 're goin' to the beach with Pete to see