She wore thick shoes and a walking-costume, and on her head was a little felt hat with a pheasant's feather. He had on an old tweed jacket and grey flannel bags. He held out his hand. "Hope we're not dragging you from your work, George," he laughed. "Do you good anyway. I felt like a day off, so I dug out Julia. 'Down tools, Julia,' I said; 'no work to-day. Where shall we go? Shall we give George Coverham a surprise?' So here we are, to lunch, please. By Jove, there's a kingfisher!" He sprang out on to the terrace to see where the electric-blue flash had whistled off to. Swiftly I glanced at Julia. In her eyes was the old deep shining. But Derry called over his shoulder: "That was a young one, wasn't it? Is there a nest? How many hatched out? Do they go for the fish?" He seemed splendidly fit, perfectly happy. He seemed so happy that suddenly I wondered what I had been making myself so miserable about. A weight seemed to lift all at once from my mind. Too much London had oppressed me, I supposed. Cambridge Circus is not the place for a country-living man to stay too long in. It bred too many fancies. Much better for the Circus-dweller to come into the country. "It went over by that bank," Derry was saying, still peering after the kingfisher; and I stepped out. "Yes. The nest's right in the bank. Six of them hatched. You'll see another in a minute." But at that moment his eyes fell on the punt. Quickly he turned to Julia. "Years since I've had a punt-pole in my hand!" he exclaimed. "Is it in working order, George? Come along----" "You go, Julia," I said; and I returned into the house to see about lunch. What had happened? Had he really brought her out for the day on his own account, as formerly he had used to do? Or was she allowing him to think that he had? Was he repeating himself even textually, in those words "Down tools, Julia, no work to-day"? I must know. It was essential that I should know. Yet already something in his manner told me that I should not learn it from him. He was here not to talk about himself, but to enjoy, keenly and vividly, every moment of his day. Whatever my own megrims had been, he showed none. Not he, but Julia, would have to explain matters. Suddenly I took a resolution. I pushed at a baize door. "Mrs Moxon!" I called. My housekeeper appeared. "Would it be upsetting your arrangements if I asked my visitors to stay for the week-end?" I asked. She considered a moment; then she thought it could be managed. But she seemed puzzled. "It _is_ Mr Rose, isn't it?" she said. Derry, I may say, had been to my house twice or thrice before. "Of course." "I thought it was, sir, but they told me only to say Miss Oliphant." "Oh, that was their little surprise for me," I replied. "Very well, Mrs Moxon. Lunch, and I'll ask them to stay for the week-end. My sister left a few things, didn't she?" "That'll be all right, sir. I'll see to Miss Oliphant."