When she came to a certain paragraph , she turned very pale and Thomas à Kempis fell to the floor unheeded . When she had finished the letter she laid it on her lap , clasped her hands , and said , `` Oh , oh , oh , '' in a faint , tremulous voice . Her cheeks were very pink and her eyes very bright . She did not even pick up Thomas à Kempis but went to the door and called Lina . `` What is it , Auntie ? '' asked Lina curiously , noticing the signs of unusual excitement about Miss Madeline . Miss Madeline held out her letter with a trembling hand . `` Lina , dear , this is a letter from the Rev. Cecil Thorne . It -- it is -- a proposal of marriage . I feel terribly upset . How very strange that it should come so soon after our talk this morning ! I want you to read it ! Perhaps I ought not to show it to anyone -- but I would like you to see it . '' Lina took the letter and read it through . It was unmistakably a proposal of marriage and was , moreover , a very charming epistle of its kind , albeit a little stiff and old-fashioned . `` How funny ! '' said Lina when she came to the end . `` Funny ! '' exclaimed Miss Madeline , with a trace of indignation in her gentle voice . `` Oh , I did n't mean that the letter was funny , '' Lina hastened to explain , `` only that , as you said , it is odd to think of it coming so soon after our talk . ''
But this was a little fib XXXXX Lina 's part .
about after albeit from in on that through to with