"And don't you feel dreadfully dull here?" asked Mrs. Ormonde, as the sisters-in-law strolled along the beach under the shelter of the east cliff, which hid them from the bright morning sunlight.
"No, not as yet. I should not like to live here always; but at present I like the place. You must confess it is very pretty."
"Yes, just now, when the weather is fine. When you have rain and a gale, it must be fearfully dreary."
"We have had some rough days, but the bay has a beauty of its own even in a storm, and we shall not be here in the winter."
"De Burgh runs down to see you pretty often?" asked Mrs. Ormonde, after a short pause. The old regimental habit of calling men by their surnames still returned when she was off guard.
"Yes," replied Katherine, calmly; "he seems to enjoy a day by the sea-side."
Mrs. Ormonde laughed—a hard laugh. "I dare say you enjoy it too."
"Mr. De Burgh is not particularly sympathetic to me, but I like him better than I did."
"Oh, I dare say he makes himself very pleasant to you, and I never knew him show attention to an unmarried woman before, nor to many married women either. Of course it would be absurd to suppose that if you had not a good fortune you would see quite so much of him."
"Naturally," returned Katherine. "I fancy my money would be of great use to him; so it would to most men. That does not affect me. If it is an incentive to make them agreeable and useful, why, so be it."