Lady Julia De Guest always lunched at one exactly, and it was not much past twelve when John Eames made his appearance at the cottage.  He was of course told to stay, and of course said that he would stay.  It had been his purpose to lunch with Lady Julia; but then he had not expected to find Lily Dale at the cottage.  Lily herself would have been quite at her ease, protected by Lady Julia, and somewhat protected also by her own powers of fence, had it not been that Grace was there also.  But Grace Crawley, from the moment that she had heard the description of the gentleman who looked out of the window with his glass in his eye, had by no means been at her ease.  Lily saw at once that she could not be brought to join in any conversation, and both John and Lady Julia, in their ignorance of the matter in hand, made matters worse.

‘So that was Major Grantly,’ said John.  ’I have heard of him before, I think.  He is a son of the old archdeacon, is he not?’

‘I don’t know about old archdeacon,’ said Lady Julia.  ’The archdeacon is the son of the old bishop, whom I remember very well.  And it is not so very long since the bishop died, either.’

‘I wonder what he is doing at Allington,’ said John.

‘I think he knows my uncle,’ said Lily.

‘But he’s going to call on your mother, he said.’  Then Johnny remembered that the major had said something as to knowing Miss Crawley, and for the moment he was silent.

‘I remember when they talked of making the son a bishop also,’ said Lady Julia.

‘What;—­the same man who is now a major?’ said Johnny.

’No, you goose.  He is not the son of; he is the grandson.  They were going to make the archdeacon a bishop, and I remember hearing that he was terribly disappointed.  He is getting to be an old man now, I suppose; and yet, dear me, how well I remember his father.’

‘He didn’t look like a bishop’s son,’ said Johnny.

‘How does a bishop’s son look,’ Lily asked.

’I suppose he ought to have some sort of clerical tinge about him; but this fellow had nothing of that kind.’

‘But then this fellow, as you call him,’ said Lily, ’is only the son of an archdeacon.’

‘That accounts for it, I suppose,’ said Johnny.

But during all this time, Grace did not say a word, and Lily perceived it.  Then she bethought herself as to what she had better do.  Grace, she knew, could not be comfortable where she was.  Nor, indeed, was it probable that Grace would be very comfortable in returning home.  There could not be much ease for Grace till the coming meeting between her and Major Grantly should be over.  But it would be better that Grace should go back to Allington at once; and better also, perhaps, for Major Grantly that it should be so.  ‘Lady Julia,’ she said, ’I don’t think we’ll mind stopping for lunch today.’

‘Nonsense, my dear; you promised.’

’I think we must break our promise; I do indeed.  You mustn’t be angry with us.’  And Lily looked at Lady Julia, as though there were something which Lady Julia ought to understand, which she, Lily, could not quite explain.  I fear that Lily was false, and intended her old friend to believe that she was running away because John Eames had come there.