She looked back. "Yes? What is it?"

He shuffled his bare feet in the grass in embarrassment and murmured
something she could not hear.

"What is it?" she said again, encouragingly, as if she were addressing a
shy child.

He lifted his dark eyes to hers in sudden appeal. "I say," he said, with
obvious effort, "if--if you meet Dicky, you--you won't tell him
about--about--"

She checked the struggling words with a very kindly gesture. "Oh, no, of
course not! I'm not that sort of person. But the next time you want to
get rid of me, just come and tell me so, and I'll go away at once."

The gentleness of her speech uttered in that soft slow voice of hers
had a curious effect upon her hearer. To her surprise, his eyes filled
with tears.

"I shan't want to get rid of you! You're kind! I like you!" he
blurted forth.

"Oh, thank you very much!" said Juliet, feeling oddly moved herself. "In
that case, we are friends. Good-bye! Come and see me soon!"

She smiled upon him, and departed, picking up her stick from the path
and turning to wave to him as she continued the ascent.

From the top of the cliff she looked back, and saw that he was