noon
`` There ! I knew he had forgotten them , '' she exclaimed , with a little malicious feminine triumph running through her tones . `` When will they be here ? '' `` Not before noon at the earliest , '' I repeated Dicky 's words in as matter-of-fact way as possible . `` Probably not until 2 or 3 o'clock in the afternoon . We might as well start on our trip . Katie is perfectly capable of attending to them . ''