As she was attiring herself, Sophie, who was seated in her deep
invalid-chair, looking at her, was seized by an uncontrollable longing
to put on her wedding-dress, and satisfy her mind as to its being a good
fit. There it lay, upon the sofa, and nothing could be easier than just
to slip into it. Cornelia, absorbed in her own crowded thoughts, never
dreamed of opposing the idea, and lent all necessary assistance to carry
it out. It was not until Mr. Reynolds had sent up word that the sleigh
waited at the door, and, gathering up her cloak and tippet, she had
kissed Sophie, left her, and was hurrying down-stairs with rustling
skirts, that she realized that she had given her parting salute to one
dressed as a bride!
CHAPTER XXVIII.
A DISAPPOINTMENT.
There could not have been a better night for sleighing. The temperature
had risen considerably since the storm, and the snow, which had fallen
to the depth of a foot, was already packed down hard upon the road, so
that the runners seldom sank beneath the surface. Moreover, there was a
full moon, just pushing its deep orange circumference above the horizon.
It had chanced to come up just where a black skeleton forest stood out
against the sky, encouraging the fancy that it had somehow got entangled
in the branches, and had grown red in the face from struggling to get
out.
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