That would be too ignominious.
The young people at the other side of the compartment,
forever wiping the window with the napkin, and straining their
eyes to see the invisible, diverted his unsettled attention.
A new perception of how much he liked them and enjoyed
having them with him, took hold of his thoughts.
It had not occurred to him before, with any definiteness,
that he would be insupportably lonely when the time came
to part with them.
Now, when he dwelt upon it, it made him feel sad and old.
He said to himself at once, with decision, that there
need be no parting at all. He would take a house
without delay, and they should live with him.
He could not doubt that this would be agreeable to them;
it would solve every problem for him.
His fancy sketched out the natural and legitimate
extensions of this project. There would be, first of all,
a house in town--a furnished house of a modest sort,
having no pretension save to provide a cheerful temporary
shelter for three people who liked one another.
Here the new household would take shape, and get its
right note of character. Apparently Louisa would not be
urged to form part of this household. He said to himself
with frankness that he didn't want her, and there had been
nothing to indicate that her children would pine for her.
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