Fleda wished he would mend his .mistake, as his understanding certainly by this time was mended. But that did not seem to be his conclusion of the best thing to do.
"Since I am here, can you bear to hear me say three words, without too much pain? I do not ask you to speak."
A faint whispered "yes" gave him leave to go on. She had never looked at him. She sat like a statue; to answer by a motion of her head was more than could be risked.
He drew up a chair and sat down, while King looked at him with eyes of suspicious indignation.
"I am not surprised," he said gently, "to find you suffering. I knew how your sensibilities must feel the shock of yesterday. I would fain have spared it you. I will spare you all further pain on the same score, if possible. Dear Miss Ringgan, since I am here, and time is precious, may I say one word before I cease troubling you? I take it for granted that you were made acquainted with the contents of my letter to Mrs. Rossitur? with all the contents? were you?"
Again Fleda's lips almost voicelessly gave the answer.
"Will you give me what I ventured to ask for?" said he, gently, "the permission to work for you? Do not trouble those precious lips to speak the answer of these fingers will be as sure a warrant to me as all words that could be spoken, that you do not deny my request."
He had taken one of her hands in his own. But the fingers lay with unanswering coldness and lifelessness for a second in his clasp, and then were drawn away, and took determinate hold of the chair-back. Again the flush came to Fleda's cheeks, brought by a sharp pain oh, bodily and mental too! and, after a moment's pause, with a distinctness of utterance that let him know every word, she said,
"A generous man would not ask it, Sir."
Thorn sprang up, and several times paced the length of the room, up and down, before he said anything more. He looked at Fleda, but the flush was gone again, and nothing could seem less conscious of his presence. Pain and patience were in every line of her face, but he could read nothing more, except a calmness as unmistakably written. Thorn gave that face repeated glances as he walked, then stood still and read it at leisure. Then he came to her side again, and spoke in a different voice.