Dinah shook her head.  “If you could come too!” she suggested, in a very small voice.

“No, I can’t,” said Scott firmly.

She sent him a darting glance.  “Are you angry with me?” she said.

“I!” said Scott in amazement.

“You—­spoke as if you were,” she said.  “And you looked—­quite grim.”

He laughed a little.  “If you are afraid of me, you must indeed be easily frightened.  No, of course I am not angry.  Dinah!  Dinah!  Don’t be silly!”

Her lips were quivering, but in response to his admonishing tone she forced them to smile.  “I know I am silly,” she said, with an effort.  “I—­I’m not nearly good enough for Eustace.  And I’m a dreadful little coward, I know.  But he does frighten me.  When he kisses me—­I always want to run away.”

“But you wouldn’t like it if he didn’t,” said Scott, in the voice of the philosopher.

“Shouldn’t I?” said Dinah.  “I wonder.  It—­wouldn’t be him, would it?”

“And what are you going to do when you are married?” said Scott, point blank.  “You’ll see much more of him then.”

“Oh, I expect I shall feel different then,” said Dinah.  “Married people are different, aren’t they?  They are not always going off by themselves and kissing in corners.”

“Not as a rule,” admitted Scott.  “But I’ve been told that there is usually a good deal of that sort of thing done during the honeymoon.”

“That’s different too,” Dinah’s voice was slightly dubious notwithstanding.  “But we are not on our honeymoon yet.  Scott, couldn’t you—­just for once—­help me to—­to find an excuse not to go?  It would be—­so dear of you.”

She spoke with earnest entreaty, her eyes frankly raised to his.

Scott looked into them with steady searching before he finally responded.  “I will speak to him if you like.  I don’t know that I shall be successful.  But—­if you wish it—­I will try.”

“Oh, thank you,” she said.  “Thank you.”  And then quickly, “You’re sure you don’t mind?  Sure you’re not afraid?”

“Oh, quite sure of that,” said Scott.

Her eyes expressed open admiration.  “I can’t think how you manage not to be,” she said.

He smiled with a touch of sadness.  “Perhaps I am not so weak as I look,” he said.

“You—­weak!” said Dinah.  “Why, you are the strongest man I ever met.”

Scott smothered a sudden sigh.  “Which only proves how very little you know about me,” he said.

But Dinah shook her head, wholly unconvinced.  Here at least she was absolutely sure of her ground.

“‘Mr. Greatheart was a strong man,’” she quoted, “’and he was not afraid of a Lion.’”

“There are sometimes worse things than lions in the path,” said Scott gravely.

CHAPTER VIII

THE VICTORY

The return of Sir Eustace, marshalling the Vicar before him, put an end to further confidences.