"They are both downstairs," Juliet said, "and one is working too hard and the other not hard enough. I had to bring dear Christopher. You don't mind?" "Of course not, my dear. I would have sent him a special invitation if I had thought. Come and take off your coat! We got in rather late or I should have been downstairs to receive you." "Tell me how you are!" Juliet said. "I don't believe I have ever seen you looking so well." "I haven't felt so well for years," Vera declared. "But I have promised Edward all the same to go up to town and see his pet doctor and make sure that the cure is complete. Personally I am quite sure. But Edward is such a dear old fusser. He won't be satisfied with appearances." She laughed on an indulgent note, and Juliet smiled in sympathy. "Well, you've given him good cause for that, haven't you? And you enjoyed the cruise? I am so glad you had good weather." "It was gorgeous," said Vera. "I must write and tell Lord Saltash. He has given me the time of my life. Have you seen anything of him by the way?" "Only once," said Juliet. "He came over to congratulate us. But that is some time ago. He may be at the other end of the world by this time." "No, I think not," Vera said. "I believe he is in England. Was he--at all upset by your marriage, Juliet?" Juliet laughed a little. "Oh, not in the least. He keeps his heart in a very air-tight compartment I assure you. I have never had the faintest glimpse of it." "But you are fond of him," said Vera shrewdly. "Oh yes, quite fond of him," Juliet's eyes had a kindly softness. "I have never yet met the woman who wasn't fond of Charles Rex," she said. "Does--your husband like him?" asked Vera. Juliet shook her head quizzically. "No. Husbands don't as a rule." "Something of a poacher?" questioned Vera. "Oh, not really. Not since he grew up. I believe he was very giddy in his youth, and then a girl he really cared for disappointed him. So the story runs. I can't vouch for the truth of it, or even whether he ever seriously cared for her. But he has certainly never been in earnest since." "What about Lady Joanna Farringmore?" said Vera suddenly. Juliet was standing before the fire. She bent slightly, the warm glow softly tinging her white neck. "I should have thought that old fable might have died a natural death by this time," she said. Vera gave her a sharp look. There was not actual distaste in Juliet's tone, yet in some fashion it conveyed the impression that the subject was one which she had no desire to discuss. Vera abandoned it forthwith. "Suppose we go downstairs," she said.