"Hello!" he said. "I caught your horses for you."
"Jove! That's lucky!" Kirk greeted the husband's arrival with genuine relief. "They bolted when we got down to take a drink, and we were getting ready for a long walk. Thanks, awfully."
"No trouble at all. I saw them as they came out on the main road." Cortlandt's pigskin saddle creaked as he bent forward to deliver the reins. He was as cool and immaculate as ever. He met Edith's eyes without the slightest expression. "Nice afternoon for a ride."
"If I had known you were riding to-day you might have come with us," she said.
He smiled in his wintry fashion, then scanned the surroundings appreciatively.
"Pretty spot, isn't it? If you are going back, I'll ride with you."
"Good enough. May I give you a hand, Mrs. Cortlandt?" Kirk helped Edith to her seat, at which her husband bowed his thanks. Then the three set out in single file.
"Which way?" inquired Stephen as they reached the highroad.
"Back to town, I think," Edith told him, "And you?"
"I'm not ready yet. See you later." He raised his hat and cantered easily away, while the other two turned their horses' heads toward the city.