to fail him; he was lost in
bewilderment.

There were sounds outside--Catherine's voice. He roused himself with a
supreme effort.

'To-night--at Lady Charlotte's?'

'To-night,' she said, and held out her hand.

A sudden madness seized him--he stooped--his lips touched it--it was
hastily drawn away, and the door opened.

CHAPTER XXXV.

'In the first place, my dear aunt,' said Mr. Flaxman, throwing himself
back in his chair in front of Lady Charlotte's drawing-room fire, 'you
may spare your admonitions, because it is becoming more and more clear
to me that, whatever my sentiments may be, Miss Leyburn never gives a
serious thought to me.'

He turned to look at his companion over his shoulder. His tone and
manner were perfectly gay, and Lady Charlotte was puzzled by him.

'Stuff and nonsense!' replied the lady with her usual emphasis; 'I never
flatter you, Hugh, and I don't mean to begin now, but it would be mere
folly not to recognize that you have advantages which must tell on the
mind of any girl in Miss Leyburn's position.'

Hugh Flaxman rose, and, standing before the fire with his hands in his
pockets, made what seemed to be a close inspection of his irreproachable
trouser-knees.

'I am sorry for your theory, Aunt Charlotte,' he said, still stooping,
'but Miss Leyburn doesn't care twopence about my advantages.'

'Very proper of you to say so,' returned Lady Charlotte sharply; 'the
remark, however, my good sir, does more credit to your heart than your
head.'

'In the next place,' he went on undisturbed, 'why you should have done
your best this whole winter to throw Miss Leyburn and me together, if
you meant in the end to oppose my marrying her, I don't quite see.'

He looked up smiling. Lady Charlotte reddened ever so slightly.

'You know my weakness,' she said presently, with an effrontery which
delighted her nephew. 'She is my latest novelty, she excites me, I
can't do without her. As to you, I can't remember that you wanted
much encouragement, but I acknowledge, after all these years of
resistance--resistance to my most legitimate efforts to dispose of
you--there was a certain piquancy in seeing you caught at last!'

'Upon my word!' he said, throwing back his head with a not very cordial
laugh, in which, however, his aunt joined. She was sitting opposite to
him, her powerful, loosely-gloved hands crossed over the rich velvet of
her dress, her fair large face and grayish hair surmounted by a mig