"I had better tell _you_ than my aunt," she said, "or than my cousins, or my uncle. They would all make such a bustle, and it is that very bustle I dread--the alarm, the flurry, the _clat_. In short, I never liked to be the centre of a small domestic whirlpool. You can bear a little shock--eh?"
"A great one, if necessary."
Not a muscle of the man's frame moved, and yet his large heart beat fast in his deep chest. What was she going to tell him? Was irremediable mischief done?
"Had I thought it right to go to you, I would never have made a secret of the matter one moment," she continued. "I would have told you at once, and asked advice."

"I had better tell you than my aunt," she said, "or my cousins, or my uncle. They would all make such a bustle, and I dread that. You can bear a little shock?"
"A great one, if necessary."
Not a muscle of the man's frame moved, and yet his large heart beat fast in his deep chest. What was she going to tell him?
"Had I thought it right to go to you," she said, "I would have told you at once, and asked advice."
