watch as he
might for the least indication of a deeper feeling, he had hitherto
watched in vain. It never occurred to him that his peculiarly reticent
form of wooing--if wooing it could be called--was hardly calculated to
enlighten her as to the state of his heart. He merely reined in his
great longing and awaited possible developments; accepting, in all
thankfulness, the certain good that was his, and determined not to
risk the loss of it without some hope of greater gain.

But of all these things Desmond guessed nothing as he sat, in the dusk
of that December evening, speculating on the fate of the girl whose
friendship he frankly regarded as one of the goodliest gifts of life.

When at last she rose from the piano, he rose also.

"_Thank_ you," he said with quiet emphasis. "How well you understand!"

"Don't let yourself be troubled by anything the Ollivers may say or
think," she answered softly. "You are doing your simple duty, Theo,
and I am sure Major Wyndham, even without knowing all the facts, will
understand quite as well--as I do."

With that she left him, because the fulness of her understanding put a
check upon further speech.

That night, when the little party had broken up without open warfare,
and Desmond stood alone with his wife before the drawing-room fire, he
told her of Wyndham's generosity.

"You'll get your week at Lahore, Ladybird," he said. "And you owe it
to Paul. He wishes us to accept the trip as his Christmas present."

"Oh, Theo...!" A quick flush revealed her delight at the news, and she
made a small movement towards him; but nothing came of it. Six months
ago she would have nestled close to him, certain of the tender
endearments which had grown strangely infrequent of late. Now an
indefinable shyness checked the spontaneous caress, the eager words
upon her lips. But her husband, who was looking thoughtfully into the
fire, seemed serenely unaware of the fact.

"You're happy about it, aren't you?" he asked at length.

"Yes--of course--very happy."

"That's all right; and I'm glad I wasn't driven to disappoint you. Now
get to bed; and sleep soundly on your rare bit of good luck. I have
still a lot of work to get through."

She accepted his kindly dismissal with an altogether new docility; and
on arriving in her own room gave conclusive proof of her happiness by
flinging herself on the bed in a paroxysm of stifled sobbing.

"Oh, if only I had told him sooner!" she lamented throug