ed at his watch a dozen
times before he heard the rustle of organdy on the stairs.

A vision of radiant youth! She had taken time to make her beauty still
more radiant with the daintiest touches to her blonde hair.

The simple dress she wore was a poem. The young cavalier was stunned
anew. There was no doubt about the welcome in her smile and voice. It
thrilled him to his fingertips. He held her hand until she drew it away
with a little self-conscious laugh that was confusing to Stuart's plan
of direct action.

There was a touch of the Southern girl's conscious poise and coquetry in
the laugh. There was something aloof in it that meant trouble. He felt
it with positive terror. He didn't have time to fence for position. He
was in no mood for a flirtation. He had come to speak the deep things.

She led him to a seat with an air of dignity and reserve that alarmed
him still more. He had taken too much for granted perhaps. There might
be another man. Conceited fool! He hadn't thought it possible. Her
manner had been so frank, so utterly sincere.

She sat by his side smiling at him in the bewitching way so many pretty
girls had done before, when they merely wished to play with love.

He spoke in commonplaces and studied her with increasing panic. Her
tactics baffled him. Until at last he believed he had solved the riddle!
She had suddenly waked to the fact, as he had, that she had met her
fate. She was drawing back for a moment in fright at the seriousness of
surrender.

"Yes, that's it!" he murmured half aloud.

"What did you say?" she asked archly.

And his heart sank again. She asked the question with a tone of teasing
that made him blush in spite of himself.

With sudden resolution he decided to make the plunge. He seized her
hand and spoke with a queer hitch of awkwardness in his voice.

"Miss Flora, I've just twenty-four hours to be here. Every one of them
is precious. I want to make them count. Don't you know that I love you?"

The little mouth twitched with a smile.

"I've heard that you're very fickle, Mr. Jeb Stuart. Isn't this all
very, very sudden, to be so serious?"

She was still smiling and her eyes were twinkling, but her hand was
not trembling. She was complete mistress of her emotions.

Stuart felt his heart pounding. He couldn't keep his hand from
trembling, nor his voice from quivering slightly.

"I know I've been a little quick on the trigger, Miss Flora. But it
came to me in a flash,