Here his daughter murmured something about the four seats in the auto, plenty of space for mademoiselle his fiancée if she would deign to accompany——
I expect Mademoiselle Charrier knew well enough how safe it was to issue that invitation! So did my employer, when he struck in with “Ah, that’s very nice of you,” then turned and addressed me directly for the first time since we had walked up from the beach together.
“Yes! That would be a good idea, wouldn’t it? You’ll come along too, won’t you, Nancy? We could get a trap back.”
I excused myself as naturally as I could manage it, with something about being rather tired. It was true enough.
As that cherry-coloured car panted, jerked, then whizzed off down the stone-wall-bordered Holyhead road, with its trio of passengers, I felt almost as if it had driven straight over me.
And I felt as if I shouldn’t have cared very much one way or the other if it had!
CHAPTER XXV
THE FIRST AVOWAL
I suppose I must have dropped off to sleep directly I threw myself down on my bed, and have slept for some time.