the least. I understand you far better than you understand
yourself;' and here he looked at her rather strangely as he rose.

'Must you go now?'

'Yes, it is quite time; I can hear wheels coming up the terrace.' And
then he took her hands, and his old smile was on his face. 'Don't have
any more mistaken fancies, Audrey; all the gold of the Indies would not
separate us. If I furnish my house, I will promise you that Gage and you
shall ransack Wardour Street with me; and when you are married, my dear,
you shall choose what I shall give you;' and as he said this he stooped
over her, for she was still kneeling before the fire, and kissed her
very gently just above her eyes. It was done so quietly, almost
solemnly, that she was not even startled. 'I don't suppose Blake would
object to that from Cousin Michael,' he said gravely. 'Good-bye for a
few days;' and then he was gone.

'I am glad he did that,' thought Audrey; 'he has never done it before.
As though Cyril would mind! I was so afraid I had really vexed him with
all my foolish talking. But he looked so sad, so unlike himself, that I
wanted to rouse him. I will not tease him any more about a possible
wife; it seems to hurt him somehow--and yet why should he be different
from other men? If he does not go on living here with father and mother,
he will want some one to take care of him.' And here she fell into a
brown study, and the work she had taken up lay in her lap. After all, it
was she who was leaving him--when she was Cyril's wife, how could she
look after Michael?

Audrey could think of nothing else for the remainder of the day. She
told Cyril about her cousin's good fortune when he took her out for a
walk that afternoon. Neither of them minded the hard roads and gray
wintry sky; when a few snowflakes pelted them they only walked on
faster.

Cyril showed a proper interest in the news.

'I am delighted to hear it,' he said heartily. 'Captain Burnett is one
of the best fellows I know, and he deserves all he has got.'

And then, as it was growing dark, and they could hardly see each other's
face, he coaxed her to go back with him to the Gray Cottage to tell
Kester the wonderful news. Now, it so happened that Mrs. Blake and
Mollie had gone to a neighbour's, and were not expected back for an
hour; but Cyril begged her to stay and make tea for them: and a very
cosy hour they spent, sitting round the fire and making all kinds of
possible and impossible plans for t