The very next day, Roger came to pay his promised call.  Molly was out in the garden with Williams, planning the arrangement of some new flower-beds, and deep in her employment of placing pegs upon the lawn to mark out the different situations, when, standing up to mark the effect, her eye was caught by the figure of a gentleman, sitting with his back to the light, leaning forwards, and talking, or listening, eagerly.  Molly knew the shape of the head perfectly, and hastily began to put off her brown-holland gardening apron, emptying the pockets as she spoke to Williams.

‘You can finish it now, I think,’ said she.  ’You know about the bright-coloured flowers being against the privet-hedge, and where the new rose-bed it to be?’

‘I can’t justly say as I do,’ said he.  ’Mebbe, you’ll just go o’er it all once again, Miss Molly.  I’m not so young as I oncst was, and my head is not so clear now-a-days, and I’d be loth to make mistakes when you’re so set upon your plans.’

Molly gave up her impulse in a moment.  She saw that the old gardener was really perplexed, yet that he was as anxious as he could be to do his best.  So she went over the ground again, pegging and explaining till the wrinkled brow was smooth again, and he kept saying, ’I see, miss.  All right, Miss Molly, I’se gotten it in my head as clear as patch-work now.’

So she could leave him, and go in.  But just as she was close to the garden door, Roger came out.  It really was for once a case of virtue its own reward, for it was far pleasanter to her to have him in a tete-a-tete, however short, than in the restraint of Mrs. Gibson’s and Cynthia’s presence.

’I only just found out where you were, Molly.  Mrs. Gibson said you had gone out, but she didn’t know where; and it was the greatest chance that I turned round and saw you.’

’I saw you some time ago, but I couldn’t leave Williams.  I think he was unusually slow to-day; and he seemed as if he couldn’t understand my plan for the new flower-beds.’

’Is that the paper you’ve got in your hand?  Let me look at it, will you?  Ah, I see! you’ve borrowed some of your ideas from our garden at home, haven’t you?  This bed of scarlet geraniums, with the border of young oaks, pegged down!  That was a fancy of my dear mother’s.’

They were both silent for a minute or two.  Then Molly said,—­

‘How is the squire?  I’ve never seen him since.’

’No, he told me how much he wanted to see you, but he couldn’t make up his mind to come and call.  I suppose it would never do now for you to come and stay at the Hall, would it?  It would give my father so much pleasure:  he looks upon you as a daughter, and I’m sure both Osborne and I shall always consider you are like a sister to us, after all my mother’s love for you, and your tender care of her at last.  But I suppose it wouldn’t do.’

‘No! certainly not,’ said Molly, hastily.