Briefly she told as much as she knew. With each successive sentence Caleb's mouth and eyes opened wider.
"And now," she ended, "as Peter and Paul have been waiting for their dinner this half-hour, I will be going. Don't trouble to come with me; but attend to your master. Good-morning, sir."
She dropped him a low curtsey and was gone. He started up.
"Where be goin', sir? Sit down; you'm not fit to stir."
But Mr. Fogo had passed him, and was out of the room in a moment. In spite of the pain that racked every limb, he overtook Tamsin in the porch.
"What are you doing?" she cried. "Go back to bed."
As she faced him, he could see that her eyes were full of angry tears. The sight checked him.
"It's—it's of no consequence," he stammered, "only I was going to ask you to be my wife."
For answer she turned on her heel, and walked resolutely down the steps.
Mr. Fogo stood and watched her until she disappeared, and then crawled painfully back into the house.