Prudence hastened forward. She came to Lawrence and held out her hand, looking up at him with a warm glance of delight.
"Welcome, Mr. Lawrence, welcome!" she said, in a low voice.
"Thank you," he responded, somewhat coldly.
"And so you're really better?"
"Oh, I'm all right now. I suppose you have all been desolated by my absence."
Lawrence knew that these last words were in very poor taste, but an inexplicable bitterness in his heart made him say them. He tried immediately to laugh them off.
"Oh, yes," returned Prudence, "we have refrained from smiling, all of us, save Leander, who is a heartless wretch."
Then she introduced the two men to each other, and they bowed stiffly, and Lord Maxwell said it must be no end of a bore to be shut up in a room; he had tried it and he knew.
Having said thus much, his lordship turned markedly to Prue. "I say, let's see what's the matter with your wheel. You've forgotten all about it, you know."
As the two walked away, Lawrence avoided looking after them. He turned towards Carolyn, and saw that she had her eyes fixed upon Prue's retreating figure. There was a look of anxiety on her face.