nearly six o'clock
He might be over-abrupt ; he might startle her ; but at the worst he should escape from this unbearable state of inactivity . So he hurried . It had stopped snowing ; the evening was now fair and cold . As it was nearly six o'clock , his father would probably have come home . He would make him first an offer of new terms , and he would see Rosie afterward . His excitement was such that he knew he could neither eat nor sleep till the questions in his heart were answered . But on reaching his own gate he was surprised to see Mrs. Willoughby 's motor turn in at the driveway and roll up to the door .