The Real Charlotte. 327 



her own and Charlotte's sake, the remembrance of that 

 idiotic blush, she assumed a little extra bravado. 



" Talking of your late admirers — " went on Charlotte, 

 " for I hope for poor Roddy's sake they're not present ones 

 — I never saw a young fellow so improved in his manners 

 as Mr. Hawkins. There was a time I didn't fancy him — as 

 you may remember, though we've agreed to say nothing 

 more about our old squabbles — but I think he's chastened 

 by adversity. That engagement, you know — " she paused, 

 and cast a side-long, unobtrusive glance at Francie. " He's 

 not the first young man that's been whipped in before 

 marriage as well as after it, and I think the more he looks 

 at it the less he likes it." 



" He's been looking at it a long time now," said Francie 

 with a laugh that was intended to be careless, but into 

 which a sneer made its way. " I wonder Roddy isn't in," 

 she continued, changing the subject to one in which no pit- 

 falls lurked ; "I wouldn't be surprised if he'd gone to 

 Gurthnamuckla to see you, Charlotte ; he's been saying 

 ever since we came back he wanted to have a talk with you, 

 but he's been so busy he hadn't a minute." 



" If I'm not greatly mistaken," said Charlotte, standing 

 up so as to be able to see out of the window, " here's the 

 man of the house himself. What horse is that he's on ? " 

 her eyes taking in with unwilling admiration the swaggering 

 ease of seat and squareness of shoulder that had so often 

 captivated her taste, as Lambert, not unaware of spectators 

 at the window, overcame much callow remonstrance on the 

 part of the young horse he was riding, at being asked to 

 stand at the door till a boy came round to take him. 



" Oh, that's the new four-year-old that Roddy had taken 

 in off Gurthnamuckla while we were away," said Francie, 

 leaning her elbow against the shutter and looking out too. 

 '* He's an awful wild young brat of a thing ! Look at the 

 way he's hoisting now ! Roddy says he'll have me up on 

 him before the summer's out, but I tell him that if he does 

 I won't be on him long." Her eyes met her husband's, and 

 she laughed and tapped on the glass, beckoning imperiously 

 to him to come in. 



Charlotte turned away from the window, and when, a few 

 minutes afterwards, Mr. Lambert came into the room, the 



