“Yes; but at present we must put no question to her.”
“Thank Heaven!” I gasped. Then I added, fervently grasping my friend’s hand: “You cannot realise, Dick, what great consolation this is to me!”
“I know, my dear fellow—I know,” he answered sympathetically. “But may I speak to you as a friend? You won’t be offended at anything I am about to say, will you?”
“Offended?—certainly not. Our friendship is too firm for that, Dick. What is it you wish to say?”
I saw that he was uneasy, and was surprised at his sudden gravity.
“Well,” he said, after a moment’s hesitation, “you’ll forgive me for saying so, but I don’t think that in this affair you’ve told me exactly the truth.”
“What do you mean?” I inquired quickly.
“I mean that when you parted from her this afternoon you were not altogether good friends.”
“You are mistaken,” I assured him. “We were as good friends as ever before.”
“No high words passed between you?”