"You talk too much, miss," said the captain, drawing the tobacco jar
towards him and slowly filling his pipe.

Miss Nugent sighed, and after striking a match for him took a seat on the
arm of his chair and placed her hand on his shoulder. "I can quite
understand him liking you," she said, slowly.

The captain grunted.

"And if he is like other sensible people," continued Miss Nugent, in a
coaxing voice, "the more he sees of you the more he'll like you. I do
hope he has not come to take you away from me."

[Illustration: "I do hope he has not come to take you away from me."]

The indignant captain edged her off the side of his chair; Miss Nugent,
quite undisturbed, got on again and sat tapping the floor with her foot.
Her arm stole round his neck and she laid her cheek against his head and
smiled wickedly.

"Nice-looking, isn't he?" she said, in a careless voice.

"I don't know anything about his looks," growled her father.

Miss Nugent gave a little exclamation of surprise. "First thing I
noticed," she said, with commendable gravity. "He's very good-looking
and very determined. What are you going to give him if he gets poor Jack
out of this miserable business?"

"Give him?" said her father, staring.