{"product_id":"2940013745018","title":"A Front of Brass","description":"Hubert Grant stood on the veranda looking over the garden at Ledge\u003cbr\u003ePoint. Just for the moment he was glad enough to be alone. He wanted\u003cbr\u003eto stand there and contemplate his new possession. Everything there\u003cbr\u003ewas his--the rainbow trout in the pool in the Dutch garden, the\u003cbr\u003estarry flowers of the anemones in the larch woods behind the house.\u003cbr\u003eAnd he had paid for it all with his own hard-earned money!\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eLedge Point was his ideal of what a country retreat should be. The\u003cbr\u003ehouse was modern, no doubt, but the fact had its advantages, and the\u003cbr\u003erambling white front was covered with a tender green that presently\u003cbr\u003ewould bear its tribute of blossoms. The big houseplace opened on two\u003cbr\u003esides into a conservatory where the flowers gleamed all the year\u003cbr\u003eround. Here were treasures of oak and china and silver gathered by\u003cbr\u003ethe late owner for many years. To the left was a cosy study; on the\u003cbr\u003eright a drawing-room in white and carmine charmingly furnished.\u003cbr\u003eGrant's eyes softened a little as he thought of the drawing-room. May\u003cbr\u003eLeverton would be presiding over that some of these early days.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eGrant had bought the place as much for her as for himself. He had\u003cbr\u003epurchased it only a few days before just as it stood, from his\u003cbr\u003epartner old Paul Spencer, and he had paid for it with a cheque drawn\u003cbr\u003eupon his own private account.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"I'm selling it you cheap,\" Mr. Spencer had said. \"Four thousand\u003cbr\u003epounds is very little. The house cost more than that, to say nothing\u003cbr\u003eof the furniture. Ledge Point has been a hobby of mine, as you know,\u003cbr\u003ebut I shall not need it any more. My doctor tells me that I must live\u003cbr\u003ealmost entirely in the South of France in future. That means\u003cbr\u003epractically giving the whole control of the business into your hands,\u003cbr\u003eGrant.\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"No hurry for that, sir,\" Grant hastened to say.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"Perhaps not. But still it has to be done. We must have a big talk\u003cbr\u003eover the money side of affairs before long. I've always looked after\u003cbr\u003ethe money department, as you know. That was part of our original\u003cbr\u003econtract. Why, for all you may know to the contrary, the firm of\u003cbr\u003eSpencer and Grant may be on the verge of bankruptcy.\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eHubert Grant smiled at the suggestion. \"I certainly have not worried\u003cbr\u003eabout that,\" he said. \"There is nobody whose name for sound finance\u003cbr\u003estands higher than yours.\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"All the same, you will have to know very shortly, Grant. You are\u003cbr\u003einclined to trust people just a little too far. For instance, it\u003cbr\u003ewould have been far wiser if you had refrained from paying me for\u003cbr\u003ethis place till after the conveyance was signed. If anything went\u003cbr\u003ewrong with me you would simply lose your money.\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eGrant smiled again. He was not in a business mood at that moment.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"After all, one can't live entirely without sentiment,\" he said. \"I\u003cbr\u003ehad a whim to call this place mine. And if I can't trust you, who am\u003cbr\u003eI to put my faith in?\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"You have some thought of getting married, I suppose?\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eGrant's face flushed slightly. The lines about his square firm jaw\u003cbr\u003ehardened. His was not exactly a handsome face, but the regular\u003cbr\u003efeatures were attractive. He had, moreover, that suggestion of\u003cbr\u003ephysical and moral strength that goes so far with most women. They\u003cbr\u003eknow by instinct that here was a man who would not fail in the hour\u003cbr\u003eof trial, who would stand before the world with a front of brass. He\u003cbr\u003estood upon the veranda in fine contract to his companion.","brand":"WDS Publishing","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47168410878192,"sku":"2940013745018","price":2.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"url":"https:\/\/shop-qa.barnesandnoble.com\/products\/2940013745018","provider":"Barnes \u0026 Noble (DEV)","version":"1.0","type":"link"}