Adrien Leroy

The afternoon following the race the Castle guests returned to town,

Lord Standon amongst them, and as that light-hearted gentleman departed

without making any formal proposal for the hand of his young ward, Lord

Barminster was greatly puzzled.

All that day he had watched Lady Constance with an unceasing vigilance,

of which, fortunately, she was unaware; but he could detect no traces of

affection in her intercourse with Lord Standon, nor could he find any

reason for his son's despair. Like a wise man, however, he made no

reference whatever to the conversation of the preceding night, for which

Adrien was exceedingly grateful, as he felt ashamed of having exposed

his real feelings, even to his father.

Instead, therefore, Lord Barminster endeavoured to find out the true

state of the case from his sister Penelope.

That lady, disturbed from her afternoon slumber, was inclined to be

testy. As far as she was concerned, she was very much against the idea

of Constance marrying any one, for the girl's presence saved her a great

deal of trouble in many ways; the consultations with the housekeeper,

the choosing of books, the writing of invitations, these and a hundred

other trifles which in the event of Constance's marriage would be

shifted back on to her own shoulders.

Naturally, therefore, she considered the suitor who would be less likely

to inconvenience her; and he, of course, was Adrien. For if he married

Constance, there would be, at least, some time during the year in which

she would be at Barminster, and leave Miss Penelope free to resume the

novel reading of which she was so inordinately fond. She scoffed,

therefore, at any likelihood of Lord Standon's suit, and flatly refused

to believe a word of it.

Meanwhile, Adrien was in a state of restless excitement, for which he

himself could scarcely account, and accordingly he determined to return

to London next day.

That night they were a family party of four, and Lady Constance noticed

that her guardian's manner was considerably more cheerful than was its

wont, and that during dinner he glanced with even more affection than

usual at the handsome face of his only son. Afterwards, when the old man

had returned to his own apartments, Adrien found his cousin in the

silver drawing-room, with Miss Penelope. The latter had taken up her

latest novel, and was devouring it with rapt attention.

Lady Constance, with a smile, beckoned to her cousin and made room for

him beside her on the Chesterfield. He sank down with a sigh of content.

"You leave us to-morrow then?" she began, in a tone of calm inquiry.