“Plans for to-morrow!...  By the way,” said Cally, glancing away to conceal a smile as she rose, “how long shall you be in town?”

“Just as long, Miss Heth, as my business here makes necessary.”

“What can I say to that?...  If I say I hope you won’t be with us long, it sounds quite rude.  And if I say I hope it will be very, very long ...”

But he would not follow that lead now.  His instinct, her expression warned him; and he was fully resolved that when he spoke again, it would be to land this “wild sweet thing” fluttering safe in his net.  However, his laugh was not quite natural.

“I may,” said he, “get a telegram calling me off, at almost any minute.  Let every one be kind to the stranger within the gates.  May I nominate myself for luncheon?”

He was unanimously elected.  This time, at parting, he did not touch his former betrothed’s hand.  His bow was accompanied by a slightly ironic smile; it seemed to say:  “Since you prefer it this way, my dear ...  But really—­what’s the use?”

Cally, snapping out the lights, felt vaguely depressed.

* * * * *

Next day, half an hour after luncheon, Hugo said to the greatest admirer he had on earth: 

“Where did Carlisle get the notion that she wanted to go in for Settlement work?”

Mrs. Heth’s reply, delivered with a beam, was masterly in its way.

“Why, my dear Hugo!  Don’t you know the sorry little makeshifts women go to, waiting for love to come to them?”

Hugo’s comment intimated that he had fancied it was something of the sort.  He then went out, to his future mother-in-law’s regret; she often wondered how it was that she and Hugo had so few good talks.

Her two young people, as the good lady loved to call them once more, had separated almost from the table, but soon to re-meet.  Carlisle, having spent “the morning” shopping,—­that is from twelve o’clock to one-fifteen,—­had departed to finish her commissions.  Canning had a regretted engagement with Allison Payne, downtown, to advise Mr. Payne touching some of his investments.  But he was to pick Carlisle up at Morland’s establishment at four o’clock, with the car he had hired by the week; and the remainder of the afternoon would belong to him alone.  He was to have the evening, too, at the House, following a large dinner-party of the elders arranged by Mrs. Heth before she knew the date of his return.  And these two occasions, the lover resolved, should suffice his need....

Cally had her hour in the shops, enjoying herself considerably.  Her purchases this afternoon were partly utilitarian, it was true, concerned with Mrs. Heth’s annual box to her poor Thompson kin in Prince William County.  But she took more than one little flyer on her own account.  Nothing more had Cally said to her father as to giving him back the fifteen hundred dollars, dividend on her stock.  Consequently she bristled with money nowadays, and had been splurging largely on highly desirable little “extras.”  And mamma, usually quite strict in her accounts, thought of trousseaux, and only smiled at these extravagances.