Janet had proposed that tea should be at five o'clock, so as to give the
visitor plenty of time to arrive. But from four onwards, all the younger
folk were in a state of excitement and expectation--Timmy running
constantly in and out of the house, rushing to the gate, from whence a
long stretch of road could be seen, till his constant gyrations got on
his mother's nerves, and she sharply ordered him to come in and be quiet.
At a quarter to five the telephone bell rang and Jack languidly went to
answer it. Then he came back into the drawing-room. "Radmore's had a
breakdown," he said briefly, "he's afraid he can't get here till seven."
Here was a disappointing anti-climax!
"Then we'd better all go and have our tea," said Timmy sententiously, and
everyone felt, in a dispirited way, that, as usual, Timmy had hit the
nail on the head.
They all trooped into the dining-room, but Timmy was the only one who did
full justice to the cakes and scones which had been made specially in
Godfrey Radmore's honour: all the others felt cross and disappointed,
especially Tom and Rosamund, who had given up going to a tennis-party.
Tea was soon over, for everyone talked much less than usual, and then
they all scattered with the exception of Timmy and Betty.
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