“Nonsense, Nan! I insist upon it! and you know nothing gives me cold!” Dick was saying, in his authoritative way; and then of course Nan yielded.
“‘Oh, wert thou in the cauld blast,’” sang Phillis, mockingly, who was following them under Captain Middleton’s escort. “Don’t you think engaged people are sometimes very masterful?” She spoke, of course, to her companion; but he had turned to warn his father and Dulce of an awkward step, and Archie intercepted the sentence:
“Most men are masterful, Miss Challoner. You will find that out some day for yourself.” He meant nothing by this little speech, and he was rather taken aback by the sudden hot blush that came to the girl’s face, and the almost angry light in her eyes, as she turned away from him and ran down the slippery steps, to Captain Middleton’s alarm.
“‘On yonder lea, on yonder lea,’” they heard her humming gayly; and Hammond caught the refrain, and finished it in a fine manly bass, while Archie stood still under the wintry sky. Why had she looked like that at him? What was there in his lightly-uttered speech to offend her?
Grace was standing alone when he re-entered the drawing-room. Most of the wax candles were extinguished, but the soft glow of the firelight irradiated the farthest corner of the room.
“What a glorious fire!” he said, warming his chilly hands at it, and then throwing himself into the easy-chair that Grace silently placed for him. “And where is Mattie? Really, she did very well to-night.”
“You must tell her to-morrow, she will be so pleased; she seems tired, and her head aches, so I advised her to go to bed.” And, though Archie did not say openly that he approved of this sensible advice, he implied it by the way he drew a low chair forward for Grace,—so close beside him that she could rest her arm upon the cushioned elbow of his.
They remained comfortably silent for along time: it was Grace who spoke first.
“Archie,” she said, rather nervously, but her eyes had a settled purpose in them, “shall you be angry if I disobey you, dear, and speak again on a certain subject?”
“What subject?” he asked, rather surprised by her manner. He had not a notion to what she was referring; he did not know how during that long silence their thoughts had been couching the same point, and that all this time she was seeking courage to speak to him.