“Do you mean my duty, dear?” asked Miriam, smiling faintly. “I am surprised at you, Eve. No dear, it isn’t. Your theory that duty is happiness is half right. But a woman has one other duty also—self-respect. I am all packed up, dear, and going to-morrow. You do not mind my not leaving my address, do you? I want to go off very quietly by myself. I do not want Gordon to know. I am afraid he will blame himself for it. You will make him see that it was not he, at all, won’t you? And after it is all over, I shall write, or maybe come to see you. You will ask him not to look for me, won’t you? There has not been a thing serious between us, Eveley, you believe that, don’t you?”
“Of course I do. I know it. I’ve chaperoned you two till I am fairly sick of it.”
Miriam smiled again. “Be sure to tell him everything I said, will you?”
Nolan and Eveley were very quiet after she had gone. And Eveley cried a little.
“I hope she will be happy,” she said tearfully.
“She will be. Gordon will wait for her, and not crowd her. He is like me. He can talk to a woman without loving her.”
“You can, at least.”
“At least, I do not talk about it all the time,” he amended. “What I mean is that his affection is for the one, and not for the sex.”
“Do you think she did right, Nolan?”
“I do not think it is my duty to judge,” he evaded cleverly. “She had one chance for happiness, and she lost. Now she is to have one more. We are her friends, and we love her. We can not begrudge her one more opportunity, can we?”