oke
from William Roper's pipe into the glade, and it hung there. Colonel Grey
had not taken five steps before his nostrils were assailed by it.

"Damn!" he said softly.

"What's the matter?" said Olivia.

She was too deeply absorbed in Grey for her senses to be alert, and
the reek of William Roper's twist had reached her nostrils, but not
her brain.

"There's some one about," he said. "Can't you smell his vile tobacco?"

"Bother!" said Olivia softly, and she frowned. They walked quietly on.
Grey was careful not to look about him with any show of earnestness, for
there was nothing to be gained by letting the watcher know that they had
perceived his presence. Indeed, he would have seen nothing, for the
undergrowth between him and the glade was too thin to form a good screen,
and William Roper was now behind the tree-trunk.

Thirty yards down the broad aisle Grey said in a low voice: "This is an
infernal nuisance!"

"Why?" said Olivia.

"If it comes to Loudwater's ears, he'll make himself devilishly
unpleasant to you."

"He can't make himself more unpleasant than he does," she said, in a tone
of quiet certitude and utter indifference. "But why shouldn't I have tea
with you in the pavilion? It's what it's there for."

"All the same, Loudwater will make an infernal fuss about it, if it gets
to his ears. He'll bully you worse than ever," he said in an unhappy
tone, frowning heavily.

"What do I care about Loudwater--now?" she said, smiling at him, and she
brushed her fingertips across the back of his hand.

He caught her fingers and held them for a moment, but the frown
did not lift.

"The nuisance is that, whoever it was, he had been there a long time," he
said gravely. "The glade was full of the reek of his vile tobacco.
Suppose he saw me kiss you in the drive here and then followed us?"

"Well, if you will do such wicked things in the open air--" she
said, smiling.

"It isn't a laughing matter, I'm afraid," he said rather heavily,
and frowning.

"Well, I should have to consider your reputation and say that you didn't.
It would be very bad for your career if it became known that you did such
things, and Egbert would never rest till he had done everything he could
do to injure you. I should certainly declare that you didn't, and you'd
have to do the same."

"Oh, leave me out of it! Hogbert can't touch me. It's you I'm thinking
about," he said.

"But there's no need to worry about me. I'm not afraid o