"She is a dear," said Miss Enistor warmly, "and has been most kind. But you are right about her feverish pursuit of pleasure," she said, with an after-thought. "Amy never rests!"
"And never lets any one else rest, which is worse," said Julian grimly; he looked at her sideways. "Yes! Mere London pleasure cannot account for your happy looks. Well, let me know who he is!"
"Let you know who he is?" repeated Alice, blushing and looking prettier than ever, "do you mean----"
"I think you know what I mean. You are in love at last."
Like a woman Alice did not reply directly to the remark. "Are you very angry, Julian?" she asked, laying a timid hand on his arm.
"My dear, I am not angry at all. We are brother and sister, you know.
Long ago I discovered that you were right as to my proposal and I was wrong. All that I could do for you was to accept the situation of your future husband if Don Pablo insisted upon marrying you. But I presume I can now resign that position," ended Hardwick gravely.
"He is called Douglas Montrose," said Alice, still evasive.
"A very pretty name for Prince Charming. Yes, your father mentioned to me that the young man had written to him, and he also mentioned that Montrose is the fortunate person who has inherited Lady Staunton"s money. So Amy got her own way, as I knew she would. An inveterate matchmaker is Amy."
Alice opened her eyes widely. "Did you guess then?"
"Not so much guess as know," replied Hardwick composedly. "Amy wrote about her desire that you should become Mrs. Montrose."
"And you?"
"I was pleased, of course. Amy told me how deeply you loved the man."
"She could not tell that for certain," pouted Alice doubtfully.
"I am not so sure of that. Women are proverbially clever and shrewd in anything that has to do with love-making. However, it seems she was right: your bright eyes and crimson cheeks tell me as much."
"I may as well confess that I love Douglas," admitted Alice boldly, "and he loves me. Already we have asked father"s consent to our marriage."
"He will give it without doubt, Alice. It is a happy way of getting back the lost money."
"Oh the money! the money!" she cried petulantly; "you talk just as Amy talks, Julian. As if I cared for money. I love Douglas, and if he were a pauper I would marry him. And my father has not jumped at the chance of getting back the money, as you seem to think. He won"t say yes and he won"t say no."
"He must say something," remarked Julian, with a shrug.
"Nothing. He refuses to give his decision until he knows more about Douglas."
Hardwick nodded. "That is natural and sensible. So the young man is coming to Tremore to be put through his paces?"
"How clever of you to guess that. He is--in a few days. Oh, how anxious I feel, Julian. So much depends upon my father."
"He will consent, I am sure, Alice. With such a disposition as you have, you could choose no one but a really good man for your husband."
Alice laughed a trifle bitterly, which was strange considering her prospects and happy state of mind. "Goodness or badness matter very little when one is in love, Julian. And they do not matter at all to my father so long as I marry a rich man. It is a good thing for me that Douglas has plenty of money, for only in that way will things run smoothly for both of us. Otherwise I feel certain that my father would still insist upon my marrying Don Pablo."
"Humph!" said Hardwick meditatively. "The question is, "Would Don Pablo marry you?" my dear girl."
"He is supposed to be in love with me," said Alice, puzzled. "You know how he has bothered me, Julian."
"Oh, yes, I know. But there is Rose Penwin, you know, that fisherman"s pretty daughter."
Alice turned to look at him in astonishment. "What about her?"
"Senor Narvaez has taken an unaccountable admiration for her since you departed for London."
"Unaccountable!" Miss Enistor"s lip curled. "There is nothing unaccountable in any man admiring a pretty girl, and Rose is more than pretty!"
"She is," said Hardwick calmly. "Pretty is not the word to apply to a beautiful and stately woman such as Rose Penwin is."
"Brunhild or Brynhild--what do you call that Norse G.o.ddess you said you so admired until you met me?"
"I never admired any Norse G.o.ddess," said Hardwick, laughing. "I simply quoted Brynhild as a type. Yes, Rose Penwin is of that type, but I am not in love with her."
"Don Pablo is?"
"So I am given to understand from village gossip. You know I chatter frequently to the fishermen and their wives. Well, Don Pablo has been paying great attention to Rose; giving her presents and----"
"Does she accept his attentions?" interrupted Miss Enistor, astonished.
"Yes and no. She does in a way, as she wants to make Job Trevel jealous!"
"Job Trevel," said Alice thoughtfully; "to be sure! He is my foster-brother, Julian, as I told you how Dame Trevel brought me up. But I thought it was understood that Rose was to marry Job."
"Too thoroughly understood," said Julian dryly. "It seems that Job is so certain of Rose that he does not trouble to pay her those pretty attentions which a lover should. Thus, to make him jealous, Rose pretends to accept the attentions of Don Pablo."
"That old mummy. He can"t even feel love."
"No! I agree with you there, and I am puzzled to know what his game is.
Why should an old man of eighty run after a girl of nineteen?"
"He ran after me and bothered me enough, as you know," said Alice in a thoughtful manner. "He must be mad. Yet I do not think a madman would or could exercise such an influence over my father. However, Job can scarcely be jealous of Senor Narvaez, who might be Rose"s great-grandfather."
"He is jealous, however. Don Pablo is wealthy and Rose likes pretty things, you know. She may not love the old reprobate: she could not. All the same the prospect of unlimited money----"
"Oh, nonsense!" broke in Alice vigorously, "she would not be so wicked.
If I see anything of her treating Job badly I shall speak to her. I am very fond of my foster-brother even though he has a bad temper."
"All the worse for Don Pablo if he has," said Hardwick significantly.
"Rose is playing with fire. Love on one hand, wealth on the other: which will she choose, do you think? I a.s.sure you, Alice, that there are the elements of a tragedy in these things."
"It may be all imagination on your part," said the girl after a pause, "and in any case, if Don Pablo now admires Rose, he will leave me alone, and my father will have no excuse to forbid my marrying Douglas."
Julian wrinkled his brow disapprovingly. "Isn"t that a selfish way of looking at the matter?"
"It is! It is!" acknowledged Alice with sudden compunction. "Love does make one selfish, Julian."
"Yet love should have the opposite effect, my dear girl. You usually have such a high standard that it seems strange you should fall short of it in this way. But you have been with Amy, and although she is my own sister, even a short time in her company does harm. She is not bad--I don"t mean that, Alice: but Amy is excessively selfish and she seems to have contaminated you in some way."