The telephone bell wakened her with a message from camp. His voice greeted her pleasantly with the word that it was all right, he had reached camp in plenty of time, found a good place for the car, and it would be at the hotel at nine o'clock. Ruth turned from the phone with a vague disappointment. He had not said a word of thanks or good-bye or anything, only that he must hurry. Not even a word to his mother. But then, of course, men did not think of those little things, perhaps, as women did, and maybe it was just as well for him to take it all as a matter of course. It made it less embarrassing for her.
But when they went down to the car, behold he was in it!
"I got leave off for the morning," he explained smiling. "I told my captain all about how you got me back in time when I'd missed the train and he told me to see you as far as Wilmington and catch the noon train back from there. He's a peach of a captain. If my lieutenant had been there I wouldn't have got a chance to ask him. I was afraid of that last night. But for good luck the lieutenant has a two days' leave this time. He's a mess!"
Ruth looked at him musingly. Was Harry Wainwright the lieutenant?
They had a golden morning together, and talked of many things that welded a friendship already well begun.
"Weren't you at all frightened last night?" asked Cameron once, looking at the delicate beauty of the face beside him and noting the strength and sweetness of it.
Mrs. Cameron was dozing in the back seat and they felt quite alone and free. Ruth looked up at him frankly: "Why, yes, I think I was for a minute or two while we were behind that barn, but----Did you ever pray when you were in a trying situation?"
He looked down earnestly into her face, half startled at her words: "Why, I don't know that I ever did. I'm not quite sure if it was praying."
"Well, I don't know that I ever did before," she went on thoughtfully, "but last night when those men got out of their car in front of the barn so near us again, I found myself praying." She dropped her eyes half embarrassed: "Just as if I were a frightened little child I found myself saying: 'God help us! God help us!' And right away we heard that other car coming and the men went away. It somehow seemed--well, strange! I wondered if anybody else ever had an experience like that."