from
all you have to think of. No, I don't want to thrust myself upon you. I
will ride over, or drive over, or walk over, every day. The distance is
nothing; it will do me all the good in the world. And, honours or no
honours, I have plenty of scholarship for Geoff. Ah, don't refuse me; it
will be such a pleasure. I have set my heart on being tutor to Geoff."

She had listened to him with a great many endeavours to break in. She
stopped him at last almost by force, putting out her hand and taking his
when he came to a little pause for breath. "Mr. Warrender," she said,
almost as breathless as he, tears in her eyes, her voice almost choked,
"how can I thank you for the thought! God bless you for the thought.
Oh, how good, how kind, how full of feeling! I hope if you are ever in
trouble you will have as good a friend as you have been to me."

"If you will be my friend, Lady Markland--"

"That I will," she cried, "all my life; but never be able to make up to
you for this." She had put out both her hands, which he held trembling,
but dared not stoop to kiss lest he should betray himself. After a
moment, half laughing, half sobbing, she bade him sit down again beside
her. "You are very, very good," she said; "but there are a few things to
be talked over. First, you are going back to Oxford in a week or two."

"I am not going up this term; that is settled already."

"Not going up! But I thought you must go up. You have not taken your
degree."

"Oh, that is not till next year," he said lightly, confident in her
ignorance of details. "There is no reason why I should hurry; and, in
fact, I had made up my mind some time since, so there is no difficulty
so far as that goes."

She looked at him with keen scrutiny; her mind in a moment flashing over
the whole course of their conversation like a light over a landscape, yet
seeing it imperfectly, as a landscape under a sudden flash can only be
seen with a perception of its chief features, but nothing more. The young
man had been tenderly kind to her all through. Since the moment when he
came into this very room to tell her of her husband's accident he had
never forsaken her. She had not thought that such chivalrous kindness
existed in the world, but she was yet young enough and inexperienced
enough to believe in it and in its complete disinterestedness; for what
return could she ever make for all he had done? And now, was this a
crowning service, an offer of brotherly kindness