He groaned.
“They never seem so at first!” he said.
“You do not quite understand,” she said gently. “I will tell you the truth. It is true that I have accepted an engagement from Mr. Earles, but it is a good one. I am not going to be a chorus girl, or even a super. I have never told you so, or Sydney, but I can sing—rather well. When my father died, and we were left alone in Jersey, I was quite a long time deciding whether I would go in for singing professionally or try painting. I made a wrong choice, it seems—but my voice remains.”
“You are really going on the stage, then?” he said slowly.
“In a sense—yes.”
Brendon went very pale.
“Miss Pellissier,” he said, “don’t!”
“Why not?” she asked, smiling. “I must live, you know.”
“I haven’t told any one the amount,” he went on. “It sounds too ridiculous. But I have two hundred thousand pounds. Will you marry me?”