“Was I? You seem to be wonderfully well informed as to my movements, Colonel Dacre.”
“Too well, Lady Gwendolyn. But allow me to congratulate you upon having so quickly recovered from your sprain. You seemed to be suffering so much that afternoon I left you on the couch in my mother’s boudoir I almost feared you would not be able to walk for some time.”
The mere shadow of a smile hovered on Lady Gwendolyn’s red mouth; but she suppressed it directly, and said:
“A woman can generally manage to do anything she wants to do.”
“And you walked back to the Castle?”
“Really, Colonel Dacre, you are exceedingly curious!”
“I must confess that I am. Nobody likes to be deceived.”
“It isn’t pleasant, certainly,” she answered, with a bitter smile. “But women are quite accustomed to that sort of thing, you know.”
“Accustomed to deceive, you mean, of course.”
Lady Gwendolyn turned from him disdainfully.