Two is the beginning of the end . Of course they lived at 14 , and until Wendy came her mother was the chief one . She was a lovely lady , with a romantic mind and such a sweet mocking mouth . Her romantic mind was like the tiny boxes , one within the other , that come from the puzzling East , however many you discover there is always one more ; and her sweet mocking mouth had one kiss on it that Wendy could never get , though there it was , perfectly conspicuous in the right-hand corner . The way Mr. Darling won her was this : the many gentlemen who had been boys when she was a girl discovered simultaneously that they loved her , and they all ran to her house to propose to her except Mr. Darling , who took a cab and nipped in first , and so he got her . He got all of her , except the innermost box and the kiss . He never knew about the box , and in time he gave up trying for the kiss . Wendy thought Napoleon could have got it , but I can picture him trying , and then going off in a passion , slamming the door . Mr. Darling used to boast to Wendy that her mother not only loved him but respected him . He was one of those deep ones who know about stocks and shares . Of course no one really knows , but he quite seemed to know , and he often said stocks were up and shares were down in a way that would have made any woman respect him . Mrs. Darling was married in white , and at first she kept the books perfectly , almost gleefully , as if it were a game , not so much as a brussels sprout was missing ; but by and by whole cauliflowers dropped out , and instead of them there were pictures of babies without faces . She drew them when she should have been totting up . They were Mrs. Darling 's guesses . Wendy came first , then John , then Michael . For a week or two after Wendy came it was doubtful whether they would be able to keep her , as she was another mouth to feed . Mr. Darling was frightfully proud of her , but he was very honourable , and he sat on the edge of Mrs. Darling 's bed , holding her hand and calculating expenses , while she looked at him imploringly . She wanted to risk it , come what might , but that was not his way ; his way was with a pencil and a piece of paper , and if she confused him with suggestions he had to begin at the beginning again . ` Now do n't interrupt , ' he would beg of her . ' I have one pound seventeen here , and two and six at the office ; I can cut off my coffee at the office , say ten shillings , making two nine and six , with your eighteen and three makes three nine seven , with five naught naught in my cheque-book makes eight nine seven , -- who is that moving ?
-- eight nine seven , dot and carry seven -- do n't speak , my own -- and the pound you lent to that man who XXXXX to the door -- quiet , child -- dot and carry child -- there , you 've done it !
came gave get got holding married missing moving nipped sprout