ten minutes at he loved to take people by surprise with sudden visits at extraordinary seasons and in the present instance he had the additional motive of being able to tell the miss whom he depended on finding sitting quietly employed after tea that he was going home to an eight o clock dinner as it happened he did not give more surprise than he received when instead of being shown into the usual little sitting room the door of the the best parlor a foot larger each way than the other was thrown open and he beheld a circle of smart people whom he could not immediately recognize arranged with all the honors of visiting round the fire and miss seated at the best table with the best tea things before her he stood a few seconds in silent amazement ejaculated margaret in a tender he recollected himself and came forward delighted to find such a circle of friends and blessing his good fortune for the for indulgence he shook hands with bowed and smiled to the ladies and did everything very prettily but as to any of address or emotion towards margaret who closely observed him perceived nothing that did not justify elizabeth s opinion though margaret s modest smiles imported that she meant to take the visit to herself he was persuaded without much difficulty to throw off his great coat and drink tea with them for whether he dined at eight or nine as he observed was a matter of very little consequence and without seeming to seek he did not turn away from the chair close by margaret which she was in providing him she had thus secured him from her sisters but it was not immediately in her power to preserve him from her brother s claims for as he came from london and had left it only four hours ago the last current report as to public news and the general opinion of the day must be understood before robert could let his attention be yielded to the less rational and im the demands of the women at last however he was at liberty to hear margaret s soft address as she spoke her fears of his having had a most terrible cold dark dreadful journey indeed you should not have set out so late i could not be earlier he replied i was detained at the by a friend all hours are alike to me how long have you been in the country miss margaret we only came this morning my kind brother and sister brought me home this very morning t is singular � is it not you were gone a great while were not you a fortnight i suppose you may call a fortnight a great while mr said mrs sharply but we think a month very little i assure you we bring her home at the end of a month much against our will a month have you really been gone a month t is amazing how time flies you may imagine said margaret in a sort of whisper what are my sensations in finding myself once more at you know what a sad visitor i make and i was so excessively impatient to see i dreaded the meeting and at the same time longed for it do you not comprehend the sort of feeling not at all cried he aloud i could never dread a meeting with miss or any of her sisters it was lucky that he added that finish the were you speaking to me said who had caught her own name absolutely he answered but i was thinking of you as many at a greater distance are probably doing at this moment fine open weather miss � charming season for hunting is delightful is not she whispered margaret i have found her more than answer my warmest hopes did you ever see anything more perfectly beautiful i think even you must be a convert to a brown complexion he hesitated was fair herself and he did not particularly want to compliment her but miss and miss were likewise fair and his devotion to them carried the day your sister s complexion said he at last is as fine as a dark complexion can be but i still profess my preference of a white skin you have seen miss she is my model for a truly feminine complexion and she is very fair is she fairer than me tom made no reply upon my honor ladies said he giving a glance over his own person i am highly indebted to your condescension for admitting me in such into your drawing room i really did not consider how unfit i was to be here or i hope i should have kept my distance lady would tell me that i was growing as careless as her son if she saw me in this condition the ladies were not wanting in civil returns and the robert stealing a view of his own head in an opposite glass said with equal civility � you cannot be more in than myself we got here so late that i had not time even to put a little fresh powder into my hair could not help entering into what she supposed her sister in law s feelings at the moment when the tea things were removed tom began to talk of his carriage but the old card table being set out and the fish and with a tolerably clean pack brought forward from the by miss the general voice was so urgent with him to join their party that he agreed to allow self another quarter of an hour even was pleased that he would stay for she was beginning to feel that a family party might be the worst of all parties and the others were delighted what s your game cried he as they stood round the table speculation i believe 