"I'll never give her credit for being as simple as that!" He was disapproving, but good-natured—and altogether occupied with Jenny in his mind. "I shall never get hold of her—I once thought I should. A pagan—a mere pagan!" He paused again and added with a reluctant admiration, "A splendid pagan!"
"There are fifty roads to town—and rather more to heaven," I quoted.
"Who said that?"
"William Mackworth Praed—and you ought to have known it."
"I daresay he knew the roads to town, Austin."
"In both cases the criticism is obvious—much depends on where you start from."
We were on the terrace now. At the other end of it we saw Margaret and Lacey walking up and down together. The tea table was deserted, and probably the tea was cold; we were neither of us thinking about it. Alison had put on his hat, but now he bared his head again to the evening breeze.
"Phew, that was a fight!" he said. "And I suppose I'm beaten! But if she yields to that temper of hers, I'll have no more to do with her."
"But if she doesn't—if she needn't?" I suggested.
He made no answer. I saw his eyes wander to the shapely couple that walked up and down.