"Not burning them!" resumed Miss O'Reilly; "and I who kept tea waiting until it was spoiled in order not to disturb you!"
"Thank you all the same, Kate."
"Not burning them!" she said, giving him a very suspicious look, "and what were you doing up there. Cornelius?"
"Finishing a little thing which I will show you to-morrow."
"He's going to flirt with painting again!" desperately said Miss
O'Reilly, rocking herself to and fro.
"I hope to go beyond flirtation, Kate."
"My poor boy, don't trust her,—she is a heartless coquette."
"No, Kate, she is merely coy,—a charming feminine defect that only makes her more irresistibly alluring."
"You have tried her once."
"And failed; I must try again: faint heart never won fair lady."