Such a question was one that formed itself naturally in the man’s mind, for it did not seem to him possible that so fair and sweet a creature as Polly, could be destined to wear out her life in loneliness and the grind and care of poverty.
One thing seemed fairly certain, however, and that was that he was not destined to find his own happiness in her, or lead her to hers through himself.
Could he but have glanced into Polly’s heart at the same time that he was telling himself this unpleasant truth, Valentine might have been pardoned if he had instantly changed his views.
Polly had parted with him calmly enough, but once he had gone, she made her way to a corner of the drawing room and gave way to tears, not a violent flood of tears, but a quiet fit of weeping, that wearied rather than eased the heart.
She felt all at once the loneliness of their position.
Till now Valentine had done everything his heart could suggest, holding himself in readiness to serve the smallest wish of her mother or herself. Indeed, Polly confessed to herself that without the help and comfort of his presence, she would have been unable to deal with the sad and difficult circumstances through which they had just passed. But she had been strangely chary of letting him know this, and she had held herself aloof from him in a manner that could not possibly be misconstrued.
She had ardently desired that there should be no misconstruction.
Polly had as keen a mental vision as any woman living, and she had not been able to shut her eyes to the fact that Valentine was drifting out of mere acquaintanceship with her into the deep and troublous waters of a strong feeling, and it was to stem this current altogether that she adopted an attitude of indifference, even coldness, toward him.
And it cost her a great deal to do this, for Polly was the most grateful little creature in the world, and it was not possible for her to be aught but truly grateful to Valentine for all his tender thought and goodness.
She had, however, arranged definite plans in her mind as to her own future, and the chief of these same plans was one that determined she would never again allow herself to care for anybody very dearly. Her mother apart, Polly resolved she would live henceforward independent of any affection.