“Wasn’t that what you were going to say? No, my child, you were going to say something far more civil, but not half so true. We may be worthy, but we are prosy; and why should we not own it? And why should you not own that you enjoyed yourself more at Denham Court than you can possibly do here? Why, that is the very thing you went there for!”
“I ought never to have gone at all.”
“Now that is a mistake, my dear child. If you were to remain always boxed up in this dreary old vault, you would soon take to spectacles and a crutch. Take all the amusement that comes in your way, little woman, and, after the first natural reaction, you will work all the better for it. And now tell me all about Denham Court; I’ve been saving myself up for your description as a little treat, though I’ve heard something of your doings, Miss Prim, from another quarter.”
And this was what Laurence, in his passion, called “spying upon me,” when Mr. Rayner owned that he heard what went on at Denham Court!
“I heard, for one thing, that you wore the pendant I gave you.”
He seemed pleased at this, I thought.
“Yes, it looked so beautiful with my muslin frock. And, oh, do you know, some of the people thought it was made of real diamonds!”
“Did they really?”
“Yes; I knew you would laugh when I told you that. But now you see it wasn’t so silly of me not to know the difference when you first showed them to me, when those people who have worn diamonds and beautiful jewels all their lives were taken in by them. One of the gentlemen, Mr. Carruthers, said he once saw a pendant just like it in real ones, and it was worth fifteen hundred pounds. Do you think it is true?”
“I dare say it is. Stones of that size would be very valuable. To whom did it belong?”