"They have gone to bathe, sir."
"When will dinner be ready?"
"Not before four o'clock, sir. The ladies have only just got up, and I have been busy helping the young lady to dress."
"Did you hear me call?"
"Yes, sir."
... So they had really run away from me, driven from my presence by an uneasy conscience, and, hungry and tired as I was, I had to wait for a couple of hours for my dinner.
What a reception after a week full of hard work and longing! The thought that she had run away from me like a school-girl caught breaking the rules stabbed me like a dagger.
When she returned to the house I was fast asleep on the sofa, and in a very bad temper. She kissed me as if nothing had happened, trying to prevent the storm from breaking. But self-control is not always possible. A hungry stomach has no ears, and a distressed heart is not soothed by deceitful kisses.
"Are you angry?"
"My nerves are on edge, don't irritate me."