n the drawing-room.

'I have almost made up my mind,' he said, standing near her, 'to take a
serious step. As you have always spoken with pleasure of your old home,
Clevedon, suppose we give up this house and go and live there?'

'It is for you to decide.'

'I want to know whether you would have any objection.'

'I shall do as you wish.'

'No, that isn't enough. The plan I have in mind is this. I should take
a good large house--no doubt rents are low in the neighbourhood--and
ask your sisters to come and live with us. I think it would be a good
thing both for them and for you.'

'You can't be sure that they would agree to it. You see that Virginia
prefers her lodgings to living here.'

Oddly enough, this was the case. On their return from Guernsey they had
invited Virginia to make a permanent home with them, and she refused.
Her reasons Monica could not understand; those which she alleged--vague
arguments as to its being better for a wife's relatives not to burden
the husband--hardly seemed genuine. It was possible that Virginia had a
distaste for Widdowson's society.

'I think they both would be glad to live at Clevedon,' he urged,
'judging from your sisters' talk. It's plain that they have quite given
up the idea of the school, and Alice, you tell me, is getting
dissatisfied with her work at Yatton. But I must know whether you will
enter seriously into this scheme.'

Monica kept silence.

'Please answer me.'

'Why have you thought of it?'

'I don't think I need explain. We have had too many unpleasant
conversations, and I wish to act for the best without saying things you
would misunderstand.'

'There is no fear of my misunderstanding. You have no confidence in me,
and you want to get me away into a quiet country place where I shall be
under your eyes every moment. It's much better to say that plainly.'

'That means you would consider it going to prison.'

'How could I help? What other motive have you?'

He was prompted to make brutal declaration of authority, and so cut the
knot. Monica's unanswerable argument merely angered him. But he made an
effort over himself.

'Don't you think it best that we should take some step before our
happiness is irretrievably ruined?'

'I see no need for its ruin. As I have told you before, in talking like
that you degrade yourself and insult me.'

'I have my faults; I know them only too well. One of them is that I
cannot bear you to make friends with people wh