I like to be confessing it to you now--but
you frightened me within an inch of my life. Well now,
you see, I'm not scared of you at all. And of course
it's because Julia's been putting me through a course
of sprouts."
The figure was lost upon Lady Cressage, but the spirit
of the remarks seemed not unpleasant to her. "I'm sure
you're full of kindness," she said. "You must forget that I
snapped at you--about papa." "All I remember about that is,"
he began, his eye lighting up with the thought that this time
the opportunity should not pass unimproved, "that you said
he didn't shine much in adversity---any more than you did.
Now on that last point I disagree with you, straight.
There wouldn't be any place in which you wouldn't shine."
"Is that the way one talks to one's niece?" she asked him,
almost listlessly. "Such flattery must surely be bad
for the young." Her words were sprightly enough, but her
face had clouded over. She had no heart for the banter.
"Ah"--he half-groaned. "I only wish I knew what was
the right way to talk to you. The real thing is that I
see you're unhappy--and that gets on my nerve--and I
should like to ask you if there wasn't something I could
do--and ask it in such a way that you'd have to admit
there was--and I don't know enough to do it."
He had a wan smile for thanks.
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