“That’s nonsense, Estelle.  I’m quite properly his father, and I’m going to be a jolly good father too.  But I don’t want to be married.  I don’t believe in it.”

“If Sabina knew you were going to love him and be good to him, she would be happier, I hope.”

“I’m going to see her presently,” he said.

“And see the baby?”

“Plenty of time for that.”

“There’s time, of course, Ray.  But he’s changing.  He’s five weeks old to-morrow, and I can see great changes.  He can just begin to laugh now.  Things amuse him we don’t know.  I expect babies are like dogs and can see what we can’t.”

“I’ll look at him if Sabina likes.”

“Of course she’ll like.  It’s rather horrid of you, in a way, being able to go on with your work for so many weeks without looking at him.  It’s really rather a slight on Sabina, Ray.  If I’d had a baby, and his father wouldn’t look at him for week after week, I should be vexed.  And so is Sabina.”

“Next time you see her, ask her to name a day and I’ll go whenever she likes.”

Estelle was delighted.

“That’s lovely of you and it will cheer her up very much, for certain,” she answered.  Then she ran away, for to arrange such a meeting seemed the most desirable thing in the world to her at that moment.  To Sabina she went as fast as her legs could take her, and appreciating that he had sent this guileless messenger to ensure a meeting without preliminaries and without prejudice, Sabina hid her feelings and specified a time on the following day.

“If he’ll come to see me to-morrow in the dinner-hour, that will be best.  I’ll be alone after twelve o’clock.”

“You’ll show him the baby, won’t you, Sabina?”

“He won’t want to see it.”

“Why not?”

“Does he want to?”

“Honestly he doesn’t seem to understand how wonderful the baby is,” explained the child.  “Ray’s going to be a splendid father to him, Sabina.  He’s quite interested; only men are different from us.  Perhaps they never feel much interest till babies can talk to them.  My father says he wasn’t much interested in me till I could talk, so it may be a general thing.  But when Ray sees him, he’ll be tremendously proud of him.”

Sabina said no more, and when Raymond arrived to see her at the time she appointed, he found her waiting near the entrance of ‘The Magnolias.’

She wore a black dress and was looking very well and very handsome.  But the expression in her eyes had changed.  He put out his hand, but she did not take it.

“Mister Churchouse has kindly said we can talk in the study, Mister Ironsyde.”