"I suppose he will," said Kitty, very demurely. "But why do you speak so contemptuously of your cousin?"
"I didn't choose my cousins, did I?" said Jack.
"You're very irritable to-day," said Kitty, severely, and she left him.
Later, as they were settling themselves in the motor-car, Jack, still captious, said, "How many more rugs? are we going to the North Pole?"
Kitty's heart jumped: they might be going a good deal further: she only said, "There are ten degrees of frost already; and it isn't like a closed carriage."
She handled the lever very gingerly, and brought them to the Hall safely. Jack did not enjoy the dinner. Kitty and the Marquis of Malmesford were plainly great friends: she had never, indeed, been so nice to him before. Jack tried to regard their friendship with the eye of an indulgent guardian, hardened, as he believed himself, to the thought of her marrying; he made a very poor hand at it. He had accustomed himself, indeed, to looking at her across the great gulf of her wealth; but the sight of another man making fortunate love to her awoke in him a desperate jealousy.
They were late leaving the Hall; and it was a bitter black frost. Aunt Anne started first in her brougham, and then Kitty, in a long sealskin jacket and sealskin cape, walked down between Jack and Malmesford to the stables, where the motor-car awaited them. Jack wrapped the rugs round her very carefully, and took his seat at her side; she cried a careless "Good-night!" to Malmesford, and started the car gently. As they turned into the road at the end of the drive, she moved the lever nearly to full speed, and with a sharp jerk of her strong little wrist snapped off the handle.
"What's that?" said Jack.
"Oh, Jack!" she cried, with an odd, excited thrill in her voice, "I've smashed the handle, and we can't stop!"