"Besides," she added, as she turned away at last, "you could not possibly be so simple as that."
"By 'simple,' do you mean foolish, or do you mean plain?"
"Neither," she answered without looking at him. "I mean innocent."
"Oh!"
Gilbert uttered the ejaculation in a tone expressive rather of bewilderment than of surprise. He did not in the least understand what she meant. Seeing that she did not enlighten him, and feeling uncomfortable, it was quite natural that he should attack her on different ground.
"You have changed," he said coldly. "I suppose you have grown up, as you call it."
For a moment Beatrix said nothing, but her lips trembled as if she were trying not to smile at what he said; and suddenly she could resist no longer, and laughed at him outright.
"I cannot say the same for you," she retorted presently; "you are certainly not grown up yet!"
This pleased Gilbert even less than what she had said before, for he was still young enough to wish himself older. He therefore answered her laughter with a look of grave contempt. She was woman enough to see that the time had come to take him by surprise, with a view of ascertaining the truth.
"How long has the Queen loved you?" she asked suddenly; and while she seemed not to be looking at him, she was watching every line in his face, and would have noticed the movement of an eyelash if there had been nothing else to note. But Gilbert was really surprised.