They walked, rather awkwardly silent, the few hundred yards to the hotel. Joanna stopped and held out her hand. She suddenly realized that she did not want to say good-bye to the young man. Their acquaintanceship had been most shockingly begun--Ellen must never know--but she did not want it to end. She felt, somehow, that he just meant to say good-bye and go off, without any plans for another meeting. She must take action herself. "Won't you come and have dinner--I mean lunch--with me to-morrow?" She scanned his face eagerly as she spoke. It suddenly struck her what a terrible thing it would be if he went out of her life now after having just come into it--come back into it, she had almost said, for she could not rid herself of that strange sense of Martin's return, of a second spring. But she need not have been afraid. He was not the man to refuse his chances. "Thanks no end--I'll be honoured." "Then I'll expect you. One o'clock, and ask for Miss Godden." Sec.14 Joanna had a nearly sleepless night. The torment of her mind would not allow her to rest. At times she was overwhelmed with shame at what she had done--taken up with a strange man at the band, like any low servant girl on her evening out--My! but she'd have given it to Mene Tekel if she dared behave so! At other times she drifted on a dark sweet river of thought ... every detail of the boy's appearance haunted her with disturbing charm--his eyes, black and soft like Martin's--his mouth which was coarser and sulkier than Martin's, yet made her feel all disquieted ... the hair which rolled like Martin's hair from his forehead--dear hair she used to tug.... Oh, he's the man I could love--he's my sort--he's the kind I like.... And I don't even know his name.... But he talks like Martin--knows all about old places when they were new--queer he should talk about them floods.... Romney Church, you can see the marks on the pillars.... I can't bear to think of that.... I wonder what he'll say when he comes to-morrow?--Maybe he'll find me too old--I'm ten year older than him if I'm a day.... I must dress myself up smart--I'm glad I brought my purple body.... Martin liked me in the old basket hat I fed the fowls in ... but I was slimmer then.... I'm getting on now ... he won't like me as well by daylight as he did in the dark--and properly I'll deserve it, carrying on like that. I've half a mind not to be in--I'll leave a polite message, saying "Miss Godden's compliments, but she's had to go home, owing to one of her cows having a miscarriage." I'll be wise to go home to-morrow--reckon I ain't fit to be trusted alone.