"I hope you had a pleasant ride," said Isabel, who observed her
companion's hesitancy.
"It would have been pleasant if for nothing else than that it
brought me here."
"Are you so fond of Gardencourt?" the girl asked, more and more sure
that he meant to make some appeal to her; wishing not to challenge him
if he hesitated, and yet to keep all the quietness of her reason if he
proceeded. It suddenly came upon her that her situation was one
which a few weeks ago she would have deemed deeply romantic: the
park of an old English country-house, with the foreground
embellished by a "great" (as she supposed) nobleman in the act of
making love to a young lady who, on careful inspection, should be
found to present remarkable analogies with herself. But if she was now
the heroine of the situation she succeeded scarcely the less in
looking at it from the outside.
"I care nothing for Gardencourt," said her companion. "I care only
for you.
"You've known me too short a time to have a right to say that, and I
can't believe you're serious."
These words of Isabel's were not perfectly sincere, for she had no
doubt whatever that he himself was.
Pages:
160
161
162
163
164
165
166
167
168
169
170
171
172
173
174
175
176
177
178
179
180
181
182
183
184