d a right to expect in obtaining
her permission to call once more in Berkeley Square himself. After that
they would soon be going down to Brotherton, and when they were there
things might be allowed to settle themselves. Then she asked him
another question. "You don't object to my going to Mrs. Jones' party on
Thursday?"

The question was very sudden, so that he was almost startled. "It is a
dance, I suppose."

"Oh yes, a dance of course."

"No;--I have no objection."

She had meant to ask him to reconsider his verdict against round
dances, but she could hardly do so at this moment. She could not take
advantage of her present strength to extract from him a privilege which
under other circumstances he had denied to her. Were she to do so it
would be as much as to declare that she meant to waltz because he had
amused himself with Mrs. Houghton. Her mind was not at all that way
given. But she did entertain an idea that something more of freedom
should be awarded to her because her husband had given her cause of
offence and had been forgiven. While he was still strong with that
divine superiority which she had attributed to him, she had almost
acknowledged to herself that he had a right to demand that she should
be dull and decorous. But now that she had found him to be in the
receipt of clandestine love-letters, it did seem that she might allow
herself a little liberty. She had forgiven him freely. She had really
believed that in spite of the letter she herself was the woman he
loved. She had said something to herself about men amusing themselves,
and had told herself that though no woman could have written such a
letter as that without disgracing herself altogether, a man might
receive it and even keep it in his pocket without meaning very much
harm. But the accident must, she thought, be held to absolve her from
some part of the strictness of her obedience. She almost thought that
she would waltz at Mrs. Jones's ball; perhaps not with Captain De
Baron; perhaps not with much energy or with full enjoyment; but still
sufficiently to disenthral herself. If possible she would say a word to
her husband first. They were both going to a rather crowded affair at
Lady Brabazon's before the night of Mrs. Jones's party. They had agreed
that they would do little more than shew themselves there. He was
obliged to go to this special place and he hated staying. But even at
Lady Brabazon's she might find an opportunity of saying wha