And Camilla sat up, rubbing her eyes.

‘It’s all right,’ he soothed her.

CHAPTER XXVIII

BEAUTY

‘Hum! he’s going to marry her,’ Simon had said, and Albert had said, and Lily had said.  ‘I knew it all along.’  When, at the end of six months, Hugo went away, much furnishing of rooms near the Dome took place by his orders during his absence.

Yet here was Hugo back at the end of the fortnight, radiant certainly, but alone.

‘There was one little matter I forgot,’ Hugo began, rather timidly, as Simon thought, when assured that everything was in order.

‘Yes, sir?’ said Simon.

‘I want you to be good enough to give up your room.’

‘My room, sir?’

‘To oblige a lady.’

‘A lady, sir?’

‘I should say a lady’s lady.’

Simon paused.  He was wounded, but he would not show it.

‘With pleasure, sir.’

‘To-night,’ Hugo proceeded, ‘you can occupy my bed in the dome;’ and he pointed to the spot where, during the day, the bed lay ingeniously hidden in a recess of the wall.  ’I shall no longer need it.  To-morrow we can make some more permanent arrangement for you.’

‘Yes, sir.’

‘Also,’ Hugo continued, ’I would like you to go along to the offices of the Morning Post for me some time to-night before ten o’clock and take this.  There will be a guinea to pay.’  Hugo handed him a slip of paper.

‘Yes, sir.’

‘Read it,’ said Hugo.

And Simon read:  ’"A marriage has been arranged, and”—­and—­has taken place, sir?’

‘Precisely.’

’Precisely, sir.  “Has taken place at Hythe between Mr. Owen Hugo, of
Sloane Street, London, and Mrs. Camilla Tudor, widow of the late Mr.
Francis Tudor."’

‘You are the first to know, Simon.’

Simon bowed.

‘May I respectfully venture to wish you every happiness, sir?’ Simon pronounced at his most formal.

‘No, you may not,’ said Hugo.  ‘But you may shake hands with me.’

And he respectfully ventured to explain to Simon how, in the case of a man like himself, with three thousand five hundred tongues ever ready to wag about him, absolute secrecy had been the only policy.

’Telephone down to the refreshment department for Tortoni to come up to me instantly.  I must order a dinner for two.  My wife and her maid will be here in half an hour.  I shall not want you—­at any rate, before ten-thirty or so.’

‘Yes, sir.  And the maid?’

‘What about the maid?’

‘You said you would order dinner for two, sir.’

‘Look here, Simon,’ said Hugo.  ’If you will take the maid down to dine in the Central Restaurant and keep her there—­take her with you for a drive to the Morning Post—­I shall regard it as a favour.  Catch!’ And he threw to Simon the gold token, which made Simon master of all the good things in the entire building.  ‘Make use of that.’