Маленькие женщины / Little Women. Уровень 3

Presently a bell sounded, the curtains flew apart, and the operatic tragedy about love and magic began.

When the performance was finished, applause followed. The excitement had hardly subsided when Hannah appeared, with “Mrs. March's compliments, and would the ladies walk down to supper.”

This was a surprise, and when they saw the table, they looked at one another in rapturous amazement. There was ice cream, actually two dishes of it, pink and white, and cake and fruit and distracting French bonbons and, in the middle of the table, four great bouquets of hot house flowers.

It quite took their breath away, and they stared first at the table and then at their mother, who looked as if she enjoyed it immensely.

“Is it fairies?” asked Amy.

“Santa Claus,” said Beth.

“Mother did it.” And Meg smiled her sweetest.

“Aunt March had a good fit and sent the supper,” cried Jo, with a sudden inspiration.

“All wrong. Old Mr. Laurence sent it,” replied Mrs.

March. “He is an odd old gentleman. He knew my father years ago, and he sent me a polite note this afternoon, saying he hoped I would allow him to express his friendly feeling toward my children by sending them a few trifles in honor of the day. I could not refuse.”

“That boy put it into his head, I know he did! He's a capital fellow, and I wish we could get acquainted,” said Jo, as the plates went round. “Our cat ran away once, and he brought her back, and we talked over the fence.

Then he saw Meg coming, and walked off. I mean to know him some day, for he needs fun, I'm sure he does,” said Jo decidedly.

“I like his manners, and he looks like a little gentleman. He brought the flowers himself.”

“We'll have another play sometime that he can see. Perhaps he'll help act. Wouldn't that be jolly?”

Chapter three

The Laurence boy

“Jo! Jo! Where are you?” cried Meg at the foot of the stairs.

“Here!” answered a husky voice from above, and, running up, Meg found her sister eating apples and crying over the Heir of Redclyffe, wrapped up in a comforter on a sofa.

“A note of invitation from Mrs. Gardiner for tomorrow night!” cried Meg, waving the precious paper and then proceeding to read it with girlish delight.

“�Mrs. Gardiner would be happy to see Miss March and Miss Josephine at a little dance on New Year's Eve.