"I've thought about you ever since we said good-bye," he declared. "I've often longed to call, but did not like to."
She laughed at his eagerness.
"Why ever not? I gave you my address. I should have been awfully pleased to see you."
"Really! It's topping of you to say so, but I don't think Chris would have been exactly tickled to death! He never forgave me for nearly drowning you, you know."
"Nonsense! And, besides, you didn't nearly drown me. It was my own fault," she laughed suddenly. "You know I never gave you that promised box of cigarettes. Don't you remember that we had a bet of a box of chocolates against a box of cigarettes? Well—you won."
She was delighted to see him again; he was very young and cheerful, and quite open in his adoration of her.
Nobody had ever looked at Marie with quite such worshipful eyes, and though she knew it was just a boy's absurd fancy, she was grateful to him for it.
They had a merry lunch together, and afterwards Marie took him back to see Miss Chester.
"I thought you were going to Scotland with Chris and Mr. Dakers," she said as they walked home.
126 "So I wanted to, but they didn't seem exactly keen, and besides—I don't care about Aston Knight, you know—awful ass, I think."