“You have done what is proper in warning my sister first,” Miss Graham remarked; but Mrs. Dalton was silent for a few moments.
“You imply that Helen doesn't know,” she said.
“She does not; I've been careful not to give her a hint,” Festing declared. “I was afraid to alarm her by, so to speak, rushing things. You're not used to it in England.”
Miss Graham's amusement was plainer. “The caution you exercised must have cost you something.”
“After all, you haven't known Helen long,” Mrs. Dalton resumed.
“That's so, in a way, but five minutes was long enough. I knew I'd never marry anybody else when I saw her in the garden the first day I came.”
He thought Miss Graham gave him an approving look, but he turned to Mrs. Dalton.
“I hope you will give your consent; but, of course, if you object, or there's anything you want to ask——”
Mrs. Dalton roused herself. She felt breathless, as if she had been carried along at an unusual pace.
“To begin with,” she said quietly, “I cannot object to you. We know something about your character; you helped my son, helped him more than you perhaps thought. But there is something I must ask.” She hesitated and then resumed: “You have seen the life Helen leads with us. She has never had to use much self-denial. What have you to offer her in Canada?”