"You knew Miss Lorton before she came here, Lord Angleford?" said Falconer.
Drake colored, and set his lips tightly.
"Yes," he said, trying to speak casually. "We met——"
He stopped, overwhelmed by a thousand memories. His eyes fell, but Falconer's did not waver.
"Then it is as an old friend of hers that you congratulate me, Lord Angleford?" he said.
"Yes, an old friend," said Drake, his throat dry and hot. "I wish you every happiness, my dear fellow; and I think you——"
Falconer raised himself on his elbow.
"You are laboring under a mistake, Lord Angleford," he said, very quietly. "You think that Miss Lorton—is betrothed to me?"
Drake nodded. His face had grown pale; there was an eager light in his eyes. Falconer dropped back with a sigh.
"You are wrong," he said. "Who told you?"