"I can come now."
"There's no hurry—no especial hurry, that is. Any time this forenoon."
But Agatha's curiosity was awakened. She conducted him out upon the porch, ensconced him in a comfortable chair, and seated herself beside him. As a preliminary, he took her hand and kissed it.
"I must begin with a confession, my dear lady. I have been keeping a secret from you, in fact more than one."
"Dear me! And I thought you had accepted me as mother confessor."
"So I have. I decided not to tell you for fear of worrying you. But the truth is that I came near walking over the cliff one afternoon, when I was out with Howard, and ending my troubles by breaking my neck."
Agatha succeeded in expressing a sufficient degree of shocked horror in her exclamation.
Forbes patted her hand reassuringly. "But I didn't, you see. My life was saved in a conventionally romantic way. A beautiful girl flung herself into my arms, and when she could get her breath, gave me a terrific scolding."
"Oh!" Agatha looked at him with unfeigned interest. "How did you know she was beautiful? Did Howard tell you?"