me for lunch...."

Esther smiled.

"I have known lunches that lasted till tea-time," she said. "When
there has been a great deal to talk about."

June went downstairs singing. During the last few days she had, as she
would have expressed it, begun to discover herself all over again.
Certainly the world had utterly changed, and was more like a fairy
city than a place where it rained a great deal and where buses and
taxicabs splashed pedestrians with mud.

Lydia met her at the foot of the stairs; she smiled at sight of the
new hat.

"I was just coming up, Miss June," she said. "There's a letter for
Miss Shepstone."

June held out her hand.

"I'll take it, and save you the trouble----" She became conscious all
at once of the girl's admiring eyes, and blushed.

"Do you like my hat, Lydia?" She turned round for inspection.

Lydia admired enthusiastically, as she admired everything of June's,
and forgetful of everything but the moment, June thrust the letter for
Esther into her coat pocket and went out blissfully into the rain to
meet George Rochester.

George was ardent; he went into rhapsodies over the hat; he forgot to
eat his most excellent lunch, and hardly took his eyes off June.

"It's all so much waste of time this being engaged," he said with
pretended annoyance. "Why don't we do the trick and get married? What
are we waiting for? I'll take you to the States for a wedding trip."

June laughed, and protested blushingly that it was much too soon.

"I haven't thought about it," she declared, not quite truthfully.
"There's tons of things to see to first. What about my business and
Esther?"

"Leave the one to look after the other," he said promptly.

She shook her head.

"I couldn't--I should hate to leave Esther alone; if only she could be
married too?"

"Well--find her a husband. What about Mellowes?" he suggested
jokingly.

June's face sobered.

"Oh--Micky!" she said. She was not sure if she was justified in
telling Rochester that Micky had once cared for Esther. "I thought he
was practically engaged to Marie Deland," she said doubtfully.

Rochester gave an exclamation.

"That reminds me," he said. "There seems to have been a bit of a row
at the Hoopers' dance last night.... I wasn't there--but I heard some
fellows at the club talking it over just now. Do you know a man named
Ashton?"

June sniffed inelegantly.

"Do I not!"

"Well, if you don't like him, you'll be pleased to hear that