“No, he isn’t,” with a suppressed laugh; “only it takes him longer to wake up. I don’t know what was the matter with him, unless he was thinking of the girl rather than of himself. Perhaps he thought that she didn’t care for him. Now he’s got a hint to the contrary, and all the power on earth won’t keep him from urging his suit. I suppose you didn’t know that he nearly went to the West Indies in one of his ships two weeks ago?”
“No; I did not.”
“He has some trouble that I don’t understand,” said Camperdown. “Anyway, I told him that if he didn’t do something to stop his fretting, he’d be in an insane asylum within a year.”
“But he did not go away.”
“No; something happened to prevent. He ought to go somewhere though. Miss Delavigne, have you not been hasty?”
“I think, Dr. Camperdown, that without being a brother, you exercise the privileges of one,” she said gravely.
“Then adopt me,” he said; “let me be your brother. If Heaven had vouchsafed me a sister, I should have prayed that she might be like you.”
Her eyes grew moist as she looked into his wistful face. She just touched the large hand extended to her, but her fingers were immediately seized in a warm grasp.
“You don’t understand,” she said, with a catch in her voice. “He really does not care. He does not come to see me.”
“Overtures will be made you in the course of time; will you receive them?”