Page:The Princess Casamassima (London and New York, Macmillan & Co., 1886), Volume 1.djvu/240

 with a generosity which made the young man feel that she was acquitting herself finely.

Rose Muniment laid her little hand on the dressmaker's arm, and responded, quickly, 'No, not a change, not a change. How can there be a change when there's already everything? There's everything here—every colour that was ever seen, or composed, or dreamed of, since the world began.' And with her other hand she stroked, affectionately, her variegated quilt. 'You have a great many pieces, but you haven't as many as there are here; and the more you should patch them together the more the whole thing would resemble this dear, dazzling old friend. I have another idea, very, very charming, and perhaps her ladyship can guess what it is.' Rosy kept her fingers on Pinnie's arm, and, smiling, turned her brilliant eyes from one of her female companions to the other, as if she wished to associate them as much as possible in their interest in her. 'In connection with what we were talking about a few minutes ago—couldn't your ladyship just go a little further, in the same line?' Then, as Lady Aurora looked troubled and embarrassed, blushing at being called upon to answer a conundrum, as it were, so publicly, her infirm friend came to her assistance. 'It will surprise you at first, but it won't when I have explained it: my idea is just simply a pink dressing-gown!'

'A pink dressing-gown!' Lady Aurora repeated.

'With a neat black trimming! Don't you see the connection with what we were talking of before our good visitors came in?'

'That would be very pretty,' said Pinnie. 'I have