Douglas gazed at him in blank amazement.
"Do you mean to tell me that you care for my cousin—seriously—would have asked her to marry you?" he exclaimed. "Yes."
"And she?"
"She was kind to me. In time I should have won her. I am sure of it."
Douglas rose from his chair and walked restlessly up and down the room.
"Drexley," he said, "if only I could have guessed this—if only I could have had any idea of it!"
"You couldn't," Drexley answered shortly. "I couldn't myself. I'd have given the lie to anybody who had dared so much as to hint at it. It was like a thunderclap to me."
"You know that I have asked her to be my wife?" "Yes."
"Listen then," Douglas said, suddenly pausing in his restless walk and facing his companion. "I will tell you how it came about. You remember the night that we were at the 'Milan'?
"Yes."