He made no reply, and her eyes rested with quiet approval on his rather embarrassed face. She had no doubt that close contact with this man had had more to do with the change in Crestwick than the influence of the country; and then she recollected that the lad’s degeneration had been marked and rapid while he had taken Clarence for a model. It was a troublesome thought and she banished it with an effort.
“You didn’t get here without difficulty; and our journey will keep you away from your business for some time,” she observed.
“As to that, I’ve earned a little leisure; and I’ve been looking forward to this trip ever since I left England. Now it’s almost like being back there again, only that in some ways it’s even better.”
So far as their surroundings might explain his satisfaction, Millicent could frankly agree with him. The black spires of the cedars, towering far above them, cut in rigid tracery against the splendors of the sunset sky; one stretch of the river still shone with a saffron light; the rest, which had grown dim, flowed through deepening shadow. Filmy mist trails streaked the rugged hills and the hoarse clamor of a rapid quivered in the cool air. Behind it all, there was something that set the lonely scene apart from any other that the girl had looked upon—one could realize that this was as yet an untamed and unsullied region. But her companion was accustomed to the wilderness, so there must be, she thought, another cause for his content.
“I am glad you do not grudge the time you may have to spend with us,” she said.
“Grudge it!” he exclaimed; and then, restraining himself, he broke into a soft laugh. “You may accuse me of that feeling when you hear me grumble.”
The ring in his voice had its meaning and it left her thoughtful. The revelation was not altogether new; she had guessed his regard for her, but she imagined that she could hold him at arm’s length if it were necessary. It was with him as it was with Nasmyth, and they were alike in their self-restraint. Nasmyth had quietly accepted his dismissal when she had shown him that it was irrevocable; and the Canadian would not trouble her with futile complaints. She wondered if out of three suitors she had not chosen the least desirable in some respects; but this could not be admitted and she resolutely thrust the idea aside.
“There’s a point I’d better mention,” Lisle resumed in a matter-of-fact tone. “I’m not going to follow the route of the first expedition from the beginning. I’ve thought of a shorter and easier one; we’ll strike the other by the big portage and then follow it down.”
“Are you afraid of wearing out your untried followers?”
“Well,” he admitted, “I’m taking no risks that can be avoided this journey.”