suaded Mr. Hood to let me come to tea in his place," he said.
"It was rather cheeky of me to ask him, I'm afraid. I hope you will
forgive me."

The arrest of all her processes of thought at sight of him lasted only
the barest instant. Then her mind flashed backward through a surmise
which embraced the whole series of events. An alarm at Hickory Hill over
her failure to arrive (which somehow they had been led to expect), a
dash by Graham (Rush not available, perhaps), into town for news. To
Wallace Hood, of course. And Wallace had betrayed her. In the interest of
romantic sentiment. The happy ending given its chance. A rich young
adoring husband instead of a job as nursery governess in Omaha!

It took no longer for all that to go through her mind than Graham needed
for his little explanatory speech on the door-step. There he stood
waiting for her answer. The only choice she had was between shutting the
door in his face without a word, or graciously inviting him to come in
and propose to her--for the last time, at all events. It was not, of
course, a choice at all.

"I'm afraid it's a terribly hot day for tea," she said, moving back from
the doorway to make room for him to come in. "Wallace likes it, though. I
might make you something cold if only I had ice, but of course there
isn't any in the house. It's nice and cool, though, isn't it; from having
been shut up so long?"

Anything,--any frantic thing that could be spun into words to cover the
fact that she had no welcome for him at all, not even the most wan little
beam of friendly tenderness. She had seen the hurt look come into his
eyes, incipient panic at the flash of anger which had not been meant for
him. She must float him inside, somehow, and anchor him to the tea table.
There she could get herself together and deal with him--decently.

He came along, tractably enough, sat in the chair that was to have
been Wallace's, and talked for a while of the tea, and how hot it was
this afternoon, and how beautifully cool in here. It was hot, too, out
at Hickory Hill but one thought little of it. The air was drier for
one thing. He and Rush had commented on the difference as they drove
in to-day.

"Oh, Rush came in with you, did he?" she observed.

He flushed and stammered over the admission and it was easy to guess why.
The fact that her brother, as well as Wallace, was lurking in the
background somewhere waiting for results gave an official cast to his
call that w