“No. There’s another guest—Elsie Durnford,” she answered. “But,” she added, her self-possession at once returning, “but why are you here, Mr. Biddulph?”
“I wanted to see Mr. Shuttleworth. Being a friend of yours, I believed that he would know where you were. But, thank Heaven, I have found you at last. Now,” I said, smiling as I looked straight into her fathomless eyes, “tell me the truth, Miss Pennington. I did not lose you the other morning—on the contrary, you lost me—didn’t you?”
Her cheeks flushed slightly, and she gave vent to a nervous little laugh.
“Well,” she answered, after a moment’s hesitation, “to tell the truth, I did. I had reasons—important ones.”
“I was de trop—eh?”
She shrugged her well-formed shoulders, and smiled reproachfully.
“But why?” I asked. “When I found you, it was under very curious circumstances. A man—a thief—had just cashed a cheque of mine for a thousand pounds, and made off with the proceeds—and——”
“Ah! please do not refer to it, Mr. Biddulph!” she exclaimed quickly, laying her slim fingers upon my arm. “Let us speak of something else—anything but that.”
“I have no wish to reproach you, Miss Pennington,” I hastened to assure her. “The past is to me of the past. That man has a thousand pounds of mine, and he’s welcome to it, so long as——” and I hesitated.