Bandit Love

For the rest of the evening Myra continued to avoid Don Carlos as much

as possible, but she smiled at him in tantalisingly alluring fashion

every time their eyes met, wondering as she did so what was in his mind

and what effect her coquetry had had upon him. And she went to bed

feeling that she had, at least, done something towards justifying her

boast that she would make Don Carlos fall in love with her in earnest.

At dead of night she woke suddenly, with the feeling strong upon her

that someone, or something, had touched her, but when she sat up in bed

and switched on the lights she could see nothing to give her any cause

for alarm. Deciding she must have been dreaming, Myra was about to

switch off the lights and compose herself to sleep again, when her eyes

fell on a folded sheet of notepaper on her pillow. With a sudden

intake of breath, she picked up the note, unfolded it, and read:

"The man who loves you will kiss you in the way you would love to be

kissed as soon as he is relieved of his promise. Relieve him of his

promise, and leave the door of your bedroom unlocked again to-morrow

night."

Myra read the note again and again, her mind in something of a tumult,

her heart throbbing fast. She knew it must have been written by Don

Carlos, and she was dismayed by the thought that he had been in her

room.

"There seems to be no limit to the man's daring and impudence," she

reflected, and was annoyed to find that she was blushing. "What cheek

to suggest that I should relieve him of his promise not to make love to

me--and leave my bedroom door unlocked! What infernal, stupendous,

insulting cheek! ... Yet I suppose he accepted what I said to Tony as

an invitation and a challenge--as I intended. Heavens! if anyone

should have seen him leaving my room at this time of the morning, I

shouldn't have a rag of reputation left. I should be hopelessly

compromised, and it wouldn't be much use producing this letter in the

hope of clearing myself. Still, I don't suppose anyone else was

prowling about at this time of the night or morning... I wonder if he

touched me or kissed me? I wonder if he is really in love with me? I

wonder..."

Myra did quite a lot of wondering before she eventually drifted into

slumber again, and when she was reawakened by her maid bringing her

morning tea, it was to find that she had been sleeping with Don

Carlos's note clasped against her breast.