"If he does not settle pretty soon, father will have the fainting sickness. He bought Hedgely Hall for George's wedding gift—and he still has it on his hands, with no prospects. However, no match is much better than a bad one."
"George will never make a bad marriage, trust him for that—and trust your father, too."
"Trust father!" she exclaimed. "I reckon I do—he is the dearest parent any girl ever had. I was only trying to be funny, and without success—even with you. It is not in me."
"The trouble is with me—I took you seriously——"
"They all do—every body takes me seriously. They will not let me be absurd, even when I try."
He looked at her with a puzzled frown—was she in jest or earnest? At all events, she was showing a new side to him, to-night—or he was seeing it, for the first time——
Her light laugh broke in on him. "Confess that you do not understand me, to-night!—Well, I do not understand myself, so, let us drop me, and take up the secret—the great secret you were afraid some one would overhear, at table:—why did you shrug your shoulders, sir?"
"The specific reason is of no value," he answered, "it simply fitted in with my thoughts, at the time. But the secret itself is very different. It may result in nothing, that is, nothing may come of it (which I doubt), but assuredly it is a fact."