“A—an excessively beautiful girl!” faltered Harriet, gazing at him in mingled hope and trepidation.
“Oh, the loveliest creature imaginable!” he said gaily. “With not two thoughts in her head to rub together! No, I wrong her! There are just two thoughts! One is of golden rings, and the other of purple silk dresses! Harriet, you goose!”
Colour flooded her cheeks; her eyes filled. “Oh, Gilly!” she uttered. “Oh, Gilly, I thought—Indeed, I beg your pardon!”
“No, it is all my fault. I wonder you don’t send me to the devil!” He saw that tears hung on her eyelashes, and put his arm around her, and kissed her. “Harry, don’t cry! I swear it isall a hum!”
Her head drooped on to his shoulder. “Yes, Gilly. I have been very stupid! Only I could not help thinking that perhaps you had met a lady whom you liked better than me.”
“I have not. I am sure I never could,” he replied. She blushed, and wiped the drops from her cheeks. He drew her towards the table, and set a chair for her, pulling up another for himself. “You always helped me out of scrapes, Harry!” he said. “I am in such a scrape now!”
She smiled tremulously at him. “Oh, no, how could you be? Tell me! What made you run away from London?”
“I was so tired with being Duke of Sale! Do you understand that, Harriet?”
She nodded. “Yes, for they worried you so. Gideon used to say that one day you would kick over the traces. Was that what it was?”
“Not quite. Matthew was in a scrape, and I thought I could rescue him from it and I was quite right: I did rescue him, and that was where Belinda came into my life. Harriet, I don’t know what the devil to do with Belinda! At least, I didn’t know until I thought of you, and then it seemed to me that the best plan would be to bring her to you. She is the most tiresome girl!”