"No—about—Ray, how would you like it if I should—well, to out with it at once—if I should marry again?" and the embarrassed old gentleman grew crimson even to the bald spot upon his head, as he then blundered through his question.
Ray sat down before he allowed himself to reply.
Now that the crisis had really come, he found he had less strength to meet it than he had anticipated.
"Well, father," he gravely said, after a moment of thought, "if you think that a second marriage is essential to your comfort and happiness, I should not presume to oppose it."
Mr. Palmer bent an anxious look upon his son.
"And yet you do not exactly approve of the plan?" he observed.
Ray looked up and frankly met his father's eye.
He believed it would be better to speak his mind freely than to dissemble in any way.
"I cannot fail to understand your meaning, for, of course, I have not been blind of late," he remarked. "I have seen how agreeable the society of Mrs. Montague is to you, and, judging from appearances, yours is no less so to her. I am bound to confess that she is a very handsome woman and very charming also in company. Still it is plain to be seen that she is a thorough society woman, and the question in my mind is, would you, with your more quiet tastes and disposition, enjoy sharing the kind of life that she leads?"
"But—I think—I hope that she would enjoy quiet home life and—my companionship, more than society, after our marriage," Mr. Palmer remarked, with some confusion.