"Yes."
Collingwood had hardly said it, and the two were looking at each other strangely enough, when the door leading into the hall opened and Lord Ellerdine came back. "Forgot my hat, old chap," he said, going up to the table. Then he saw Peggy.
"Peggy!" he cried, going up to her and taking one of her hands in both of his. "Buck up, little woman! It'll be all right—we'll pull you through!"
Then he began to hesitate and stammer, while his cheeks flushed and he showed every possible sign of embarrassment.
"Yes," he continued, "we'll pull you through. Won't we, Colling?"
He hesitated, at a loss for words; and then his eye fell upon the table. "Ah!" he said. "My hat—yes—good-bye. Buck up, little woman! And, Colling, don't forget eight o'clock to-night."
Red and shy as a schoolgirl, Lord Ellerdine somehow got himself out of the room.
"Poor, dear old Dicky!" Peggy said with a sigh, more to herself than to her companion; and then, turning, "Colling, why have you come?"
Collingwood held out both his hands. "Peggy—dear little Peggy!" he said. "My heart bleeds for you!"
Peggy stepped back. "Don't let's talk about that," she said swiftly.