As he turned he half expected to see the tiny child as he had last seen her, with the puppy in her arms calling, "It’s Di, Jim." For a moment they stood holding each other’s hands and only the eyes of the two spoke. The thoughts of both involuntarily went back to their last meeting. They realized that unconsciously they had taken up their childhood manner. Slowly their hands unclasped and Diana was the first to speak. "Oh, Jim, I should hardly know you. You are so big, so strong, and yet—you look as though you had been very ill; have you?" She studied Jim’s face closely, gaunt and drawn, but with the eyes still like gray pools of suppressed fire. Jim forgot the troubled thoughts that Henry’s words had aroused. He only knew that Diana stood before him, young and beautiful. He threw back his head and laughed; it was the ringing, joyous laugh of a boy. "And I almost thought, as I turned, that I could see my little Di," he said. The memory of the delicate child faded into the tall, strong figure before him. Quickly he noted the complexities of her face; its newly acquired look of womanhood seemed curiously incongruous with the rest of her personality. He saw in her eyes a haunting expression of marked patience. The new acquaintance of the grown man and woman had adjusted itself. "Oh, Jim, I’m so proud of you," Diana said, gravely. "You have really done something with your life that is worth while." "Which means, I suppose, that the rest of us have not," a voice said. Jim and Diana turned as Henry spoke. He was standing in the doorway. Jim noticed with satisfaction that his eyes rested on Diana in unquestionable gratification. Perhaps, after all, Henry’s love for Diana was real. He remembered that his aunt, in her letter, had written of her great faith in this marriage for Henry’s happiness—indeed, he well remembered that the letter seemed to insist upon the benefits Henry would derive from the marriage. He wondered what it had meant for Diana. "Welcome to the hero," Henry chaffingly said, as he crossed to Jim’s side. An underlying nervous excitement, at once apparent to Jim, clung to Henry’s manner. Otherwise his greeting was more than reassuring. "Did you finish your business interview?" Diana questioned. A shade of displeasure showed on Henry’s face as he answered: "Yes, yes, I had more than enough of it." "We postponed luncheon," Diana explained to Jim, "because Henry found his solicitor wished to see him about some repairs needed on the estate. The request was urgent, Henry said, and I knew you would not mind the delay."