'No, I shall not,' he said coolly. 'You will not let me.'
If that were one, Hazel made no attempt to correct it; having no mind just then to deal with any of his mistakes, in any shape; remembering too exactly what some of them had been. So she sat very still, looking down at the two small folded hands, and wondered to herself if Mr. Rollo had cross-questioned Gyda? if he meant to cross-question her?and if he did, where she should hide? That fainting, that walk across the hill!even now, with three long days of oblivion between, and the sorrow and the doubt all pushed aside; even now, she could hardly bear the recollection; and just caught the deep sigh that was coming, and shut her lips tight, and kept it back.
And that was what had troubled him! The colour flitted and changed in her cheeks, in the sort of live way Wych Hazel's colour had, and then the brown eyes gave a swift sidelong glance, to see what the owner of the grey ones was about?
He was studying her, as if he had a mind to find out all her thoughts in their secret hiding-places. But his attention was diverted now to something in his fingers, which he was unfolding and unwrapping; and presently he took one of the little folded hands, the left one, and put upon the forefinger a ring set with a very large emerald. The ring fitted; the stone was superb. Rollo laid the little hand, so beringed, in his own palm, and looked at it there; then his eye met Hazel's with a bright, sweet, peculiar smile.
'We shall never misunderstand each other again, Wych! Shall we?'
It was queer, to see the colour recede and get out of sight, as if gathering strength for its vivid return. But Hazel did not look at him, nor at the ring, not at anything,did not see anything, probably, just then. She caught her breath a little, finding her words one by one
'But Inevermisunderstoodyou,' she said.
'Would you like to stand an examination on that point?'
Hazel considered a little.
'I am willing to hear anystatements.'