cknowledged his salute and stood up.

"A very lovely evening, Miss Grey."

"Yes," said Miss Grey, and no more.

"I have been at your house, Miss Grey, and saw your people; and I heard
that possibly you were in the park. I thought perhaps you would have
been at home. When I saw you last night you seemed to believe that you
would be at home all the day." This was said in a gentle tone of implied
reproach.

"_You_ spoke then of walking in the park, Mr. Sheppard."

"And I have kept my word, you see," Mr. Sheppard said, not observing the
implied reason for her change of purpose.

"Yes, I see it now," she answered, as one who should say, "I did not
count upon it then."

Of all men else, Minola Grey would have avoided him. She knew only too
well what he had come for. She would perhaps have disliked him for that
in any case, but she certainly disliked him on his own account. His
formal and heavy manners impressed her disagreeably, and she liked to
say things that puzzled and startled him. It was a pleasure to her to
throw some paradox or odd saying at him, and watch his awkward attempts
to catch it, and then while he was just on the point of getting at some
idea of it to bewilder him with some new enigma. To her he seemed to be
what he was not, simply a sham, a heavy piece of hypocrisy. Formalism
and ostentatious piety she recognized as part of the business of a
Nonconformist minister, in whom they were excusable, as his grave garb
would be, but they seemed insufferably out of place when adopted by a
layman and a man of the world, who was still young.

"I am glad to have found you at last," Mr. Sheppard said, with a grave
smile.

"You might have found me at first," Minola said, quoting from Artemus
Ward, "if you had come a little sooner, Mr. Sheppard. I have only lately
escaped here."

"I wish I had known, and I would have come a great deal sooner. May I
take the liberty of sitting beside you?"

"I am going to stand, Mr. Sheppard. But that need not prevent you from
sitting."

"I should not think of sitting unless you do. Shall we walk a little
among the trees? This is a gloomy spot for a young lady."

"I prefer to stand here for a little, Mr. Sheppard, but don't let me
keep you from enjoying a walk."

"Enjoying a walk?" he said, with a grave smile and solemn emphasis.
"Enjoying a walk, Miss Grey--and without you?"

She deliberately avoided meeting the glance with which he was
endeavoring to give additional m