and then away from him, to
hide the tears which were streaming down my cheeks, he said,
coldly--

"Are you weeping now over the excess of your happiness?"

I did not answer immediately, for in truth I could not; and,
taking a book, Edward walked away, and sat down by the
chimney. Other people came in--I had to dress for dinner, and
it was not till late in the evening that, by alluding
artfully, though not altogether untruly, to the pain with
which I had heard of my aunt's probable departure from England
(for it had, indeed, been the original cause of my deep
depression), I succeeded in removing the tacit displeasure
which had obscured Edward's countenance.

I had rather expected that Henry would call in Brook-street
that evening, but he did not.

The next day, while I was dressing, Mrs. Hatton asked to see
me. I was anxious to know what construction she had put on the
commission I had entrusted to her; and I hardly knew how to
treat it myself, for if I allowed her to suppose that there
was nothing but a trifle in question, she might, at some
future time, allude to it without any scruple.

After she had sat down for a few minutes, and answered my
inquiries about her numerous nephews and nieces, to whom she
was the most beloved, the most tyrannised over, and the
happiest of aunts, she said with a smile, "I hope you got the
letter in time, dear Miss Middleton?"

"Quite in time," I answered, colouring in spite of myself.

"I thought you would," she rejoined, "for I had calculated
that Tuesday being the 5th of July, there would be plenty of
time to write again and get an answer before the 9th, in case
the patterns did not suit you. I remember so well, in old
times, we used always to have little contrivances about Mrs.
Middleton's birth-day."

This was exactly what I had feared. Henry had made up some
story connected with his sister's birth-day, to account for
our secret correspondence; or else he had taken up this idea
from her own suppositions; and now there was no reason why she
should not, when the day was past, inquire after the result of
what had been settled between us before any one who might
happen to be present. I therefore resolved to tell her as much
of the truth as I could venture to do; and, taking her hand in
mine, I said, "My dear Mrs. Hatton, either Henry, with very
good intentions, has deceived you on the subject, or your own
suppositions have misled you. The letter which I wrote to him,
and t