“Listen,” he said tenderly. “They have been saying all sorts of nice things about you, and now I have one more word to add, ‘I love you!’ Do you mind—dearest!” He dropped her hands and put his arms softly about her, drawing her gently to him as if he almost feared to touch one so exquisitely precious. Then Cornelia came to life. “But _the lady_!” she cried in distress, putting out her hands at arm’s length and holding herself aloof. “Oh, it is not like you to do a thing like this!” But he continued to draw her close to himself. “The lady!” he laughed, “But there is no other lady! The lady is really a vampire that tried to suck my blood. But she is nothing to me now. Didn’t I tell you yesterday that she wasn’t even a friend?” “Oh,” trembled Cornelia, “I didn’t understand,” and she surrendered herself joyously to his arms. “Well, I want you to understand. It’s a miserable tale to have to tell and I’m ashamed of it, but I want you to know it all. I meant to tell it yesterday but everything seemed to be against me. How about riding in the park tomorrow afternoon and we’ll thrash it all out and get it done with forever. And meantime, can you take me on trust? For I love you with all the love a man can give to a woman, and nobody, not even in imagination, ever had the place in my heart that you have taken. Can you love me dear heart?” The company in the house missed them after a time and trooped out to find them, even Carey getting up from his cushions against the protest of Grace, and coming to the door. “You know I’ve got to go to work tomorrow,” he explained smiling, “I can’t afford to baby myself any longer.” And Cornelia came rosily out from behind the vines and went in for the good-nights, her eyes starry with joy. As they went up the stairs for the night Louise slipped an arm around her sister and whispered happily: “Cornie, I don’t believe that red lady is anything at all to Mr. Maxwell, do you?” Cornelia bent and kissed her sister tenderly and whispered back in a voice that had a ring in it: “No, darling, I _know_ she isn’t!” Louise falling cosily to sleep while her sister arranged her hair for the night said to herself sleepily: “I wonder now, _how_ she knows! She didn’t seem so sure yesterday. He must have told her about her out on the porch.” CHAPTER XXX