ry dearly.'

A slight motion of her part,--he could not tell whether she
started, or what it was,--changed instantly to a breathless
stillness. Only a timid stir of the hand, as if it meant to
slip away unnoticed. But it was held too firmly for that.

'I don't know whether you know yet,' he went on after a slight
pause, 'what it is to love anybody very dearly. I remember you
told Gyda one day that you had never loved any one so since
your mother. Certainly I have never had a right to flatter
myself that _I_ had been able to teach you what it means. If I
am mistaken,--tell me.'

'Easy work!'--she might have answered again,--to tell him what
she had never told herself. And particularly nice of him to
choose such a place for his inquiries, where there was no
possible way of exit (for her) but the coach window. What had
he never tried to teach her, except to mind? And of course she
never knew anything about--anything! But there Hazel shifted
her ground, and felt herself growing frightened, and certainly
wished her new guardian a hundred miles away. What did he
mean?--was he only sounding her, as Mr. Falkirk did sometimes?
If so, he might just find out for himself!--With which clear
view of the case, Wych Hazel set her foot (mentally) on all
troublesome possibilities, and sat listening to hear her hear
beat; and wondered how many statements of fact Mr. Rollo was
going to make, and at what point in the list truth would
oblige her to start up and confront him?

He had paused a little, to give room for the answer he did not
expect. Seeing it came not, with a slight hastily drawn breath
he went on again.

'In the mean time you have heard what you never ought to have
heard,--or not for a long time; and through the same good
agency other people have heard it too; and you are placed in a
position almost to hate the sight of me, and shrink from the
sound of my name; and you are looking upon your father's will
as binding you to a sort of slavery. I am not going to stand
this a minute longer.

'Hazel--unless you can love me dearly, my privileges as
guardian would be of no use to me. I would not take advantage
of them if I could. I would not have you on any other terms.
And I certainly am not going to be a clog upon your happiness.
I have made up my mind to keep my office, nominally, for one
year; practically I mean to leave you very much to Mr.
Falkirk. I will keep it for a year. At the end of the year,
you shall tell me w