“All right, Holly.” Julian threw himself on to the steps and lighted a cigarette, gazing appreciatively about him. How pretty it was here at Waynewood! Some day he meant to own it. He was the only male descendant of the old family, and it was but right and proper that the place should be his. In a year or two that interloping Yankee would be glad enough to get rid of it. Then he would marry Holly, succeed to the Old Doctor’s practice and―――― Suddenly he recollected that odd note of Holly’s and drew it from his pocket. Nonsense, of course, but it had worried him a bit at first. She had been piqued, probably, because he had not been over to see her. He flicked the letter with his finger and laughed softly. The idea of Holly releasing him from their engagement! Come to think of it, he wasn’t sure that there was any engagement; for the last three years there had been a tacit understanding that some day they were to be married and live at Waynewood, but Julian couldn’t remember that he had ever out-and-out asked Holly to marry him. He laughed again. That was a joke on Holly. He would ask her how she could break what didn’t exist. And afterwards he would make sure that it did exist. He had no intention of losing Holly. No, indeed! She was the only girl in the world for him. He had met heaps of pretty girls, but never one who could hold a candle to his sweetheart. Holly came back followed by Uncle Ran. The horse was led away to the stable, and Holly sat down on the top step at a little distance from Julian. Julian looked across at her, admiration and mischief in his black eyes. “So it’s all over between us, is it, Holly?” he asked, with a soft laugh. Holly looked up eagerly, and bent forward with a sudden lighting of her grave face. “Oh, Julian,” she cried, “it’s all right, then? You’re not going to care?” Julian looked surprised. “Care about what?” he asked, suspiciously. “But I explained it all in my note,” answered Holly, sinking back against the pillar. “I thought you’d understand, Julian.” “Are you talking about this?” he asked, contemptuously, tapping the letter against the edge of the step. “Do you mean me to believe that you were in earnest?” “Yes, quite in earnest,” she answered, gently. “Shucks!” said Julian. But there was a tone of uneasiness in his contempt. “What have I done, Holly? If it’s because I haven’t been getting over here to see you very often, I want you to understand that I’m a pretty busy man these days. Thompson’s been getting me to do more and more of his work. Why, he never takes a night call any more himself; passes it over to me every time. And I can tell you that that sort of thing is no fun, Holly. Besides,”――he gained reassurance from his own defence――“you didn’t seem very particular about seeing me the last time I was here. I reckoned that maybe you and the Yankee were getting on pretty well without me.” “It isn’t that,” said Holly. “I――I told you in the letter, Julian. Didn’t you read it?”