Page:The Rover Boys at School.djvu/179

Rh answered the young cadet. "I wish I could take this burden off your shoulders, indeed I do!" and impulsively he caught up her plump hand and kissed it.

"Oh!" She snatched the hand away and blushed prettily, but was not angry. "I&mdash;I&mdash;it's something to know one has a friend, Dick," she said softly. Can I come to you if I&mdash;that is&mdash;if I want something done?"

"To be sure, Dora—I'll—I'll do anything in the wide world for you—there!" and he kissed her hand again.

At that moment an elderly lady who had been hired to wait on Mrs. Stanhope came in, and the conversation was changed. Dora asked about life at the Hall, and Dick told of the football game and of the parts Tom and Sam had played in it.

"You are a great set of boys!" Dora smiled. "I wish I had a couple of sisters."

"You have your two cousins, Nellie and Grace."

"Yes, but they are not as intimate as sisters would be&mdash;although they are the best of cousins."

"What does Mr. Laning say of Crabtree?" Dick whispered, as the nurse left the room for a moment.