At which Mrs Chichester was in a flutter of consternation, lest I should for one moment imagine that she had meant to be unkind in leading me on to make such an admission of fallibility, and prettily begged Mr Wentworth to give his assistance to enable her to obtain my forgiveness.
It took their united powers of persuasion, and gave Mrs Chichester opportunities for all sorts of pretty amiabilities, before Miss Haddon could be brought to reason; and then the former had to be satisfied with what she termed 'a very slight unbending of the stern brow,' as an acknowledgment of my defeat.
Then how pleasant and amiable it was to take all the trouble she did to put me in a good humour with myself again, by pointing out that the very wisest of us may sometimes err in our judgment, and so forth. Matters were progressing thus agreeably, when Lilian wanted Mrs Chichester's advice about the arrangement of some ferns in the conservatory, and I was left for a few moments alone with Robert Wentworth.
'Lilian did not obey her instincts in inviting this Miss Reed to come to reside with her, Miss Haddon.'
I smiled.
'And believing that, you allowed the stigma of being an injudicious friend to be attached to me.'
'Because I saw you so willed it; and I do not waste my powers of oratory when they are not required.'
Then, abruptly changing the subject—there was none of the suavity and consideration, which Mrs Chichester considered to be so essential to friendship, between him and me—he went on: 'Tell me what you think of this Miss Reed. Is she what she appears to be?'
'What does she appear to you?'
'Well, I suppose we could not expect her to be quite a gentlewoman, but really—— Your little Becky is a great deal nearer the mark, according to my standard.'