ause of one of the prettiest girls you have ever seen," he
answered, bringing Bridget's eyes again to his face.

"I understand," she murmured.

"I'm certain you don't," he said, with a laugh. "Erica Danvers. She
got herself engaged to a man who used to be at Trinity with me. The
misfortune was that he had six brothers older than himself. Well,
Erica came to me one day and declared she had hit on a capital plan.
Why shouldn't I make Bolsover my steward, pay him a living wage, and
all the rest of it. He and Erica have twins," added Jimmy.

Bridget walked a few yards along Piccadilly in silence.

"You have been extraordinarily unfortunate," she said rather gravely,
"although you ought to be pitied rather than blamed."

"Not since I met you the other afternoon. Do you see much of old
Faversham?" he asked, for the colonel's admiration had been manifest at
Grandison Square.

"He has always been very kind to me," she faltered.

"Surely you meet with kindness everywhere," said Jimmy.

"Except from Fate!" answered Bridget, with a sigh.

"Wait and see!" he exclaimed. "The better part of life is before you."

"Are you by way of telling my fortune?" asked Bridget.

"I hope to be allowed to influence it," said Jimmy, as she stopped at
the corner of Dover Street. "You will let me come and see you," he
urged, taking her hand.

"You said your sister was coming!" Bridget reminded him.

"Yes," he said.

"You must ask her to bring you."

CHAPTER XIV

THE WOOING O'T

Jimmy Clynesworth now began to employ all his arts to induce Sybil to
take some notice of Bridget. His eagerness, however, stood in his way.
The more forcibly he attempted to convince his sister of his desire,
the more obstinately she maintained her ground. Her hand was
strengthened by a visit to Charteris Street, where Victor often
attracted her, although some glass beads on her jacket made the child
regard her as an enemy.

After Phoebe had voiced her husband's opinion of Miss Rosser, Lawrence
himself came home in time to dot the i's and cross the t's. Sybil left
the house with the opinion that poor Jimmy stood in the acutest danger.
It seemed evident that she had scarcely exaggerated when she declared,
in the first place, that Bridget was not "respectable"!

She stiffened herself as it was only possible to do when duty called
her, and the consequence was that all of Jimmy's entreaties proved
vain. He, however, was not on any account