"Yes, yes; I know," said Kitty; "all right! But I thought you knew better than that. This is the wrong shop for flummery of that sort, as you ought to have learnt by this time. Have some lunch?"
They sat down to the table, and during the meal talked on ordinary subjects; for the most part discussing their common acquaintance, but always carefully avoiding bringing Beresford's name forward. When they had finished, Kate said, "You want to smoke, of course. I think I shall have a puff myself. No, thank you; your weeds are too big for me; I've got some Queens here that old Sir John Elle sent me after I broke that roan mare for his daughter. By George, what a brute that was! nearly killed me at first, she did; and now you might ride her with a pack-thread."
Simnel did not reply. Kate Mellon curled herself up on an ottoman in the window with her habit tucked round her; lit a small cigar; and slowly expelling the smoke said, as the blue vapour curled round her head, "And now to business! You wanted to talk to me, you said; and I told you to come up to-day. What's it all about?"
"About yourself, Kate. You know thoroughly well my feelings to you; you know how often I have--"
"Hold on a minute!" said Kate; "I know that you've been philandering and hanging on about me,--or would have been, if I'd have let you,--for this year past. I know that well enough; but I thought there was to be none of this. I thought I'd told you to drop that subject, and that you'd consented to drop it. I told you I wouldn't listen to you, and--"
"Why would not you listen to me, Kate?" said Simnel earnestly.
"Why? Because--"
"Don't trouble yourself to find an excuse; I'll tell you why," said Simnel. "Because you were desperately bent on a fruitless errand; because you were beating the wind and trying to check the storm; because you were in love,--I must speak plainly, Kitty, in a matter like this,--in love with a man who did not return your feeling, and who even now is boasting of your passion, and laughing at you as its dupe!"
"What!" cried the girl, throwing away the cigar and starting to her feet.
"Sit down, child," said Simnel, gently laying his hand on her arm; "sit down, and hear me out. I know your pluck and spirit; and nothing grieves me more, or goes more against the grain with me, than to have to tell you this. But when I tell you that the man to whom you so attached yourself has spoken lightly and sneeringly of your infatuation; that amongst his friends he has laughingly talked of a scene which occurred on the last occasion of his visit to this house, when you suggested that he should marry you--"