n brazenness. Only he himself knew
how brazen the speech was.

Lady Mary looked at him with entire composure.

"I am quite sure you are not an aspirant for anybody. And I happen
to know that you dislike moneyed international marriages. You are so
obviously British that, even if I had not been told that, I should know
it was true. Miss Vanderpoel herself knows it is true."

"Does she?"

"Lady Alanby spoke of it to Sir Nigel, and I heard Sir Nigel tell her."

"Exactly the kind of unnecessary thing he would be likely to repeat."
He cast the subject aside as if it were a worthless superfluity and
went on: "When you say there is no one suitable, you surely forget Lord
Westholt."

"Yes, it's true I forgot him for the moment. But--" with a laugh--"one
rather feels as if she would require a royal duke or something of that
sort."

"You think she expects that kind of thing?" rather indifferently.

"She? She doesn't think of the subject. She simply thinks of other
things--of Lady Anstruthers and Ughtred, of the work at Stornham and the
village life, which gives her new emotions and interest. She also thinks
about being nice to people. She is nicer than any girl I know."

"You feel, however, she has a right to expect it?" still without more
than a casual air of interest.

"Well, what do you feel yourself?" said Lady Mary. "Women who look like
that--even when they are not millionairesses--usually marry whom they
choose. I do not believe that the two beautiful Miss Gunnings rolled
into one would have made anything as undeniable as she is. One has seen
portraits of them. Look at her as she stands there talking to Tommy and
Lord Dunholm!"

Internally Mount Dunstan was saying: "I am looking at her, thank you,"
and setting his teeth a little.

But Lady Mary was launched upon a subject which swept her along with it,
and she--so to speak--ground the thing in.

"Look at the turn of her head! Look at her mouth and chin, and her eyes
with the lashes sweeping over them when she looks down! You must have
noticed the effect when she lifts them suddenly to look at you. It's so
odd and lovely that it--it almost----"

"Almost makes you jump," ended Mount Dunstan drily.

She did not laugh and, in fact, her expression became rather
sympathetically serious.

"Ah," she said, "I believe you feel a sort of rebellion against the
unfairness of the way things are dealt out. It does seem unfair, of
course. It would be perfectly disgracef