Mrs. Capes nodded shrewdly. "Mr. Madoc was always speaking against you and your father, sir. No, I won't say a word. Are you----?" She looked searchingly at him.
Hench guessed what she meant. "Yes, I am," he admitted boldly, "very much in love, but if she learns who I am she won't marry me."
"The temper of the family is obstinate," she sighed. "All the same, sir, as you are young and good-looking, I wouldn't give up hope."
"As that means giving up Gwen, you may be certain that I won't. Hush, here she is, Mrs. Capes. Not a word."
"You can trust me, sir," replied the housekeeper, and looked quite pleased at being in the secret of the young Squire's identity. "I'll go now," she added, raising her voice for the benefit of Gwen. "You know your way about, Miss."
"Yes. Don't let us trouble you," replied Miss Evans more graciously, and then the two young people were left alone.
Gwen conducted Hench all over the vast house, showing him into one room after another filled with treasures. The place was very old and the rooms were spacious, while the furniture and the draperies and the carpets, the pictures, statues, carvings, and bric-a-brac were delightfully attractive. After wandering in raw lands, Owain deeply appreciated this real home, with which Destiny had provided him. He thought that if the goddess would only add to her gift by giving him Gwen for his wife, that he would have nothing else to wish for in the wide world. His appreciation and delighted observations pleased Gwen, although she sighed when they emerged again into the sunshine, intending to show him the garden.
"It's horrid to leave it," she said, casting a backward glance at the ancient house. "I envy my cousin."
"I thought you didn't," remarked Owain calmly.
"After seeing my old home again, I do," answered Gwen, passing quickly across the lawn. "Come down here and see the flowers."