She seemed to have no thought of disobeying him. Silently enough she sat down, while he leaned against the tree. She was rather hurt to find that so much of her old influence over him seemed to be lost. She would have liked him to tremble and blush, yet he had not even sought to take her white hand in his own. He had not kissed her face, nor touched the long, golden hair that he had so warmly praised. He stood looking gravely at her; then he spoke. "Doris," he said, "in the presence of Heaven you promised to be my wife. I do not absolve you from that promise, and until I do so, I claim you as my own." A hot flush crimsoned his face, sudden passion gleamed in his eyes and quivered on his lips. "I will never release you," he cried. "Death may take you from me; but of my own free will you shall never, so help me Heaven, be freed from your promise! You hear me?" "Yes," she replied, in a low voice, "I hear." "As the man you have promised to marry, as the man who alone on earth has the right to question you, tell me how you are living here now?" "How am I living?" she replied, raising innocent eyes to his face. "I do not quite understand what you mean." "I mean precisely what I say. With whom are you living, and what are you doing for a livelihood?" "What a strange question, Earle. I told you; I am governess to some little children." "You swear that before Heaven?" "Before anything or any one you like," she replied, indifferently, smiling the while to herself. CHAPTER XLII. "THIS IS YOUR REVENGE--TO HUMILIATE ME." "I am bound to believe you," he said, "although my faith in you has been terribly shaken. I ask you because I heard that you passed here as a married lady. Is that true?" A keen observer might have noticed that her face grew pale--that she trembled and seemed for one moment uncertain. "Is it true?" repeated Earle. In the eyes raised to his face there was such blank innocence of expression that, in spite of his doubts, he felt ashamed of himself and his words. "You heard such a thing of me!" she said. "Why, who could have told you?" "That matters little; I heard it. Is it true?" "You puzzle me," she said, with the same startled expression. "Why should I do such a thing--why pass myself off as married? I do not understand--you puzzle me, Earle." "Is it true, or not?" he repeated. "No," she replied. "You swear that, likewise, before Heaven?" "Certainly," she said, promptly. "I do not understand." Then he blamed himself for being hard upon her. "We will not discuss it any more," he said, "I have other things to say to you."