They began to talk of other things. She seemed not to want to say anything more on the disagreeable subject; and Justin was glad to have her talk of herself, of her school life, and her Eastern experiences. Somehow the old sense of intimacy had in a measure departed. He withdrew his hand from about her waist, that was still slender and girlish. She had been removed to a great distance from him, it seemed. Yet, outwardly, she had not changed, except for the better. She was more womanly, more gracious, now that her tears had been shed and her thoughts had turned into other channels, even than in the old days. Nevertheless, Justin could not at once summon courage to say to her the old sweet nothings in which both had delighted. “You are still my sweetheart?” he ventured timidly, by and by. “The East hasn’t changed you any in that respect, I hope?” She looked at him earnestly, and her eyes grew luminous. “No, Justin, not in the least; but there is one thing, which has come to me while I was away. We aren’t children any longer.” “I am well aware of that fact,” he said; “I have been painfully aware of it, all evening.” She knew what he meant. “We aren’t children any longer; you are a man now, and I am a woman. I heard a sermon the other Sunday, from those verses in which Paul said he had put away childish things and no longer acted or thought as a child. Long ago I told you that I loved you, and promised to marry you some time; I haven’t forgot that.” “I shall never forget it!” “But now that we’re no longer children, I think it is your duty to speak to Uncle Philip.” The thought of facing Philip Davison on such a mission flushed Justin’s face. Yet he did not hesitate. “I will do so,” he promised; “I ought to have been courageous enough to do it long ago, and without you telling me to.” Instantly he felt taller, stronger, more manly. He knew he was deliriously happy. To feel the soft pressure of her body against his, the electric touch of her hand, and to hear her say that she loved him, and would some time marry him, thrilled him. He looked down into her face, with the love light strong in his eyes. He recalled how he had loved her during her long absence. “You didn’t see any one while you were gone that you thought you could love better?” He believed he knew what the answer would be, but he awaited it breathlessly. “I oughtn’t to say so, Justin, until after you have spoken to Uncle Philip; but I saw no one I could love half as much as you—no one.” “Yet you saw many men?” She laughed lightly; it was like sunshine after rain. “Not so very many as you might think. Mrs. Lassell’s Finishing School for Young Ladies is a very exclusive and select place, you must remember. She holds a very tight rein over the girls placed in her charge.” “Is it so bad as that? It’s a good thing for me, I guess, that she is so careful; you might get to see someone you could like better than me.” She laughed again, seeing the anxiety he strove to cover.