“Phoo! phoo!” replied Charles, “what’s an evening party?  Never worth remembering.  Your father might have asked us to dinner, I think, if he had wanted to see us.  You may do as you like, but I shall go to the play.”

“Oh!  Charles, I declare it will be too abominable if you do, when you promised to go.”

“No, I did not promise.  I only smirked and bowed, and said the word `happy.’  There was no promise.”

“But you must go, Charles.  It would be unpardonable to fail.  We were asked on purpose to be introduced.  There was always such a great connexion between the Dalrymples and ourselves.  Nothing ever happened on either side that was not announced immediately.  We are quite near relations, you know; and Mr Elliot too, whom you ought so particularly to be acquainted with!  Every attention is due to Mr Elliot.  Consider, my father’s heir:  the future representative of the family.”

“Don’t talk to me about heirs and representatives,” cried Charles.  “I am not one of those who neglect the reigning power to bow to the rising sun.  If I would not go for the sake of your father, I should think it scandalous to go for the sake of his heir.  What is Mr Elliot to me?” The careless expression was life to Anne, who saw that Captain Wentworth was all attention, looking and listening with his whole soul; and that the last words brought his enquiring eyes from Charles to herself.

Charles and Mary still talked on in the same style; he, half serious and half jesting, maintaining the scheme for the play, and she, invariably serious, most warmly opposing it, and not omitting to make it known that, however determined to go to Camden Place herself, she should not think herself very well used, if they went to the play without her.  Mrs Musgrove interposed.

“We had better put it off.  Charles, you had much better go back and change the box for Tuesday.  It would be a pity to be divided, and we should be losing Miss Anne, too, if there is a party at her father’s; and I am sure neither Henrietta nor I should care at all for the play, if Miss Anne could not be with us.”

Anne felt truly obliged to her for such kindness; and quite as much so for the opportunity it gave her of decidedly saying—­

“If it depended only on my inclination, ma’am, the party at home (excepting on Mary’s account) would not be the smallest impediment.  I have no pleasure in the sort of meeting, and should be too happy to change it for a play, and with you.  But, it had better not be attempted, perhaps.”  She had spoken it; but she trembled when it was done, conscious that her words were listened to, and daring not even to try to observe their effect.

It was soon generally agreed that Tuesday should be the day; Charles only reserving the advantage of still teasing his wife, by persisting that he would go to the play to-morrow if nobody else would.

Captain Wentworth left his seat, and walked to the fire-place; probably for the sake of walking away from it soon afterwards, and taking a station, with less bare-faced design, by Anne.