"It's as if I had not done enough to make you comfortable."

"Oh!" cried the lad passionately, and he turned to lay his hand on
Waller's shoulder. "How can you say that, when you have done too much,
and made me feel--almost alone in the world as I am--as if I should like
to stay here always!"

"Do you mean that?" cried Waller excitedly.

"Of course I do. I never had a friend like you before, and I never knew
what it was to lead a boy's life. Out there in France I never heard
about anything else hardly but politics, and getting back the crown for
the Stuarts."

"Then you really don't want to go?" cried Waller.

"No; but I must go, and the sooner the better. You know what I must
feel."

"Yes," said Waller sadly, "but--"

"Oh, it must come to an end. I lie awake of a night wondering how it is
that your servants have not found it all out before, with you bringing
up all that I have to eat and drink. I fancy sometimes that they must
know."

"But they don't," said Waller grimly.

"But how have you managed?"

"Oh, somehow," said Waller, with a half-laugh. "It's been mostly done
by stealing."

"By stealing! Nonsense! You couldn't be a thief."

"Thank you for the compliment," said Waller, laughing; "but you are
wrong. I have gone on stealing every day, everything you have had; only
it was only my own breakfast and dinner."

"Then you have been starving yourself for me!" said Godfrey excitedly.

"Oh, no, I haven't," cried Waller merrily, "only I've got the credit of
being such a pig that cook's quite anxious about me. It was only the
day before yesterday she wanted me to take some physic; said I was
eating twice as much as was good for me, and it made her very anxious,
and she wished my father would come home."

"Yes," cried Godfrey, "your father, too. Why, you told me long ago that
you expected him every day."

"Well, so I did; but he doesn't come, and he doesn't write. I don't
know why it is; but, of course, he will come some day."

"Yes, and there will be terrible trouble about your harbouring me. Oh,
Waller, I did hope your man of the woods would have got a passage for me
in some boat. Why, it's four days since he was here and promised to
make that right."

"Oh, give him time," said Waller impatiently; "and do pray leave off
grumbling when things are going so well."

"Going so well?"

"Yes, I didn't tell you. I was saving it up, only we got talking about
other things. I have some