ot a pot of money. There's
hardly a man in the army as rich as he is, if there's one. Soldiering
means only fun for him. Most of us here are like me; or if they don't
come from generations of soldiers as I do, they're in the service for a
career. Vandyke will probably resign if he gets bored. He's dining at
this house to-night. Notice him, and tell me what you think of him
afterward, will you?"

"You're coming, too, aren't you?" I asked. "Mrs. Main--Kitty--said you
were, and I was so glad."

"I should say I was coming!" he exclaimed. "Catch me giving Vandyke a
clear field at the start, if he _is_ my superior officer! You see,
Vandyke----"

But on the name, as if it were her cue, Diana floated in, and Mrs. Main
steamed in with her, through one of the long windows which opened on to
the veranda. After that I ceased to exist.

Di wore white that night for the dinner party. A good deal of what
Father was saving in hotel bills he put into clothes for her. It was a
new dress, and sparkled all over like a moonlit lily crusted with dew. I
had a fancy to put on the frock with roses on it, which I'd bought at
Selfridge's so many months ago, with the money paid me by Eagle for my
mother's lace. The dress was still alive, and on active service (though
the roses began to look somewhat sat upon); and Eagle had never seen me
in it. Not that he would notice me now! But I had a queer feeling of
sentiment about the gown, and often I had told myself that never, never
would I throw it away. I should have had a much queerer feeling if I'd
known all that was yet to come of my first meeting with Eagle March in
the Wardour Street curiosity shop.

Kitty Main had explained that it wasn't to be a big, tiresome dinner on
our first night: merely a few people she thought dear Lord Ballyconal
and Lady Di would like to meet, and "who would love to know them--little
Peggy, too, of course!"--with a belated gasp of politeness for me.

There would be, besides ourselves, only Mr. and Mrs. Tony Dalziel of New
York; their pretty daughter, Millicent, just out; their son, Lieutenant
Dalziel--"Tony," too; Major Vandyke; and Captain March, who was already
our friend.

The gossips did suggest, Kitty had gone on to hint, that Millicent
Dalziel was rather throwing herself at Captain March's head (if an
heiress could be said to throw herself at the head of a poor man); but
of course, Milly wouldn't have a look in now, if dear Lady Di had any
attention to sp