he went on, quickly,
remorsefully, "No, no, I wouldn't lose that night, our first meeting, in
'the Jail.' That's far too precious a memory, Celia. It was then I fell
in love with you, that you wiped out the past, that you gave me back
life itself. No, I can't lose that. But we'll forget everything
else--for the present, at any rate. Now, let's talk about our--wedding.
I'll get Reggie Rex to help us, and we'll be married as soon as we can.
I shall have done my business in London in a very short time, and we'll
start for the ranch as soon as possible. The country is very beautiful,
the house, the whole place, is charming; you will like the life----"

She smiled up at him. "Yes, I know. But, Sydney, don't you know that I
should like any place, if I lived in it, with you?"

Unconsciously, they had left the wood and were now standing by the gate
on the roadway. It was all so still and solitary that they stood, hand
in hand, looking at each other and lost to everything else in the world;
they were so lost that they did not hear the sound of a carriage coming
round the bend of the road; and Lady Gridborough's jingle was upon them
before they had time to escape. In the little carriage were her ladyship
and Reggie Rex. Celia was the first to see them, and with a faint
exclamation and a burning blush, she gripped Derrick's hand, and looked
round as if to fly into hiding. But they were standing in a little
clearing, and there was no time to get back to the woods. As the jingle
came up to them, Lady Gridborough put up her lorgnette and surveyed
them,

"Why, bless me!" she said. "That looks like Celia Grant. It is! Who is
that with her? Celia!" she called. "Celia!"

Then suddenly her voice faltered, the hand that held the lorgnette
shook, her face seemed to stiffen and, in a low voice, she said to
Reggie, who had pulled up Turk,

"Drive on! Drive on quickly!"

"Certainly," said Reggie, who had raised his hat to the pair, and was
regarding them with a benedictory smile. "But what's the matter?"

"I--I know that young man," said Lady Gridborough. "What is Celia doing
with him? She doesn't know----"

"Doesn't know what?" asked Reggie, as he persuaded Turk to resume his
amble.

"That he's a very wicked young man; that he has no right to be in her
company, to be standing there with her, all alone. Yes; he's a very
wicked, unprincipled young fellow."

"Hold on, Lady Gridborough!" said Reggie, blandly. "I must tell you that
yo