"And I'm so glad to see you, Miss Flora."
They had each uttered the most banal greeting. Yet the way in which the words were spoken was significant.
Never in his life had he heard a voice so gentle, so tender, so appealing in its sincerity. All desire to flirt, to match wit against a charming girl vanished. He felt a resistless impulse to protect her from any fool who would dare try to start a flirtation. She was too straightforward, too earnest, too sincere. She seemed a part of his own inmost thought and life.
It was easy to see that while she was the pet of her father, she was unspoiled. Stuart caught himself at last staring at her in a dazed, foolish way. He pulled himself together and wondered how long he had held her hand.
"Won't you play for me, Miss Flora?" he asked at last.
"If you'll sing," she laughed.
"How do you know I sing?"
"How do you know I play?"
"I heard you."
"I heard you, too."