He knew what that meant, but it no more occurred to him that she was pressing him to make a much more important decision than such a thought had crossed her own mind. The words had come quite naturally, and they were the right ones under the circumstances. Lionel knew that it was time to act if he was not a coward, and the moral timidity of the Follitts had never gone so far as that. They would all put off a difficult interview or a disagreeable scene as long as possible, but when it was positively necessary to stand up for their beliefs, or their likes or dislikes, they did not run away.
“We must be married in June,” Lionel said, after a moment’s thought. “In the meantime you had better go back to your father and leave me to settle matters with my mother. It has been an amusing little comedy, and no one need ever know the truth but you and I. To begin it over again would not be worthy of you, and I should be a brute if I allowed it. Besides, I am sure those girls would find you out.”
“That’s very likely,” answered Ellen.
“My mother has grown very fond of you, too, and though she is afraid that we shall all make love to you if you stay, the good impression will remain if you leave, and that’s something, after all.”
“She will never consent to your marrying a foundling,” Ellen said gravely. “That will be the real difficulty.”
“Why need she know that you are not really Herbert Scott’s daughter?”
“Because I won’t marry you unless she knows the whole truth,” answered Ellen with determination. “She will probably be very angry in any case, but she will forgive us in time. Don’t you see how dreadful it would be if there should be something more to tell after she has accepted the situation?”
Lionel saw that she was right, and made up his mind to face the whole difficulty at once. He said so.
“Then I’ll speak to Lady Jane to-morrow morning,” Ellen said. “She will probably be only too glad to let me go at once.”
“You may be sure of that!” laughed Lionel, for she had told him what had taken place in the library.