er
suspicion confirmed in the paling cheeks and distended eyes; heard it
confirmed in the shaking voice. But who could the man be? Claire was
the most candid, the most open of colleagues; she loved to talk and
describe any experiences which came her way; every time she returned
from an afternoon in town she had a dozen amusing incidents to recount,
which in themselves constituted a guide to her doings. Cecil felt
satisfied that Claire had had no masculine escort on any of these
occasions, and with the one exception of Mrs Willoughby's "At Home" she
had paid no social visits. Yet there did exist a man on whose honour
she was prepared to pin her faith; of that Cecil was convinced.
Probably it was someone in Brussels whom she was still hoping to meet
again!

"Well, don't get excited," she said coolly. "If you choose to look upon
life as a fairy tale, it's not my business to wake you up. The Sleeping
Beauty position is very soothing while it lasts. Don't say I didn't
warn you, that's all! I don't call it exactly `poisonous' to try to
prevent another girl from suffering as badly as one has suffered
oneself."

"Perhaps not--certainly not, but it was the way you did it. Sorry,
Cecil, if I was cross! I hope _this_ time, dear, all will go well, and
that you'll be very, very happy. Do tell me anything you can. I won't
ask questions, but I'd love to hear."

Cecil's laugh had rather a hard intonation.

"Oh, well! once bitten, twice shy. I'm older this time, and it's a
different thing. Perhaps I shall be all the happier because I don't
expect too much. He's very devoted, and he'll be rich some day, but his
father gives him no allowance, which makes things tight just now. He is
an erratic old man, almost a miser, but there are pots of money in the
family. Frank showed me the name in _Landed Gentry_; there's quite a
paragraph about them, and I've seen a picture of the house, too. A
beautiful place; and he's the eldest son. It's in Surrey--quite near
town."

"He hasn't taken you down to see it?"

"Not yet. No. It's a private engagement. His father doesn't know. He
is waiting for a chance to tell him."

"Wouldn't the father be glad for his heir to marry?"

"He wouldn't be glad for him to marry _me_! But the estate is entailed,
so Frank can do as he likes. But the old man is ill, always having
asthma and heart attacks, so it wouldn't do to upset him, and of course
till he knows, Frank can't tell any ot