noon
I hope it will let me down easy . '' `` Two o'clock , '' said Rand , closing his watch with a snap . `` An hour behind time . '' The boys had been waiting at the great oak since just after noon , but Pepper had not yet come . `` Perhaps he got off the road and got lost in the woods , '' suggested Jack . `` Maybe he got back sooner than he expected by some other road and went home , '' said Gerald . `` Shall I run over and see ? ''