decent man. If you must go, why don't you do that?"

She laughed rather tremulously. "You think every good woman ought to
marry, don't you, Jack?"

"When there's a good man waiting for her, why not?" said Jack.

She lifted her head and looked at him. "I'm not going to marry Fletcher
Hill, Jack," she said, with firmness.

Jack made a slight movement of impatience. "I never could see your
objection to the man," he said.

She laughed again, drawing herself back from him. "But, Jack darling, a
woman doesn't marry a man just because he's not objectionable, does she?
I always said I wouldn't marry him, didn't I?"

"You might do a lot worse," said Jack.

"Of course I might--heaps worse. But that isn't the point. I think he's
quite a good sort--in his own sardonic way. And he is a great friend of
yours, too, isn't he? That fact would count vastly in his favour if I
thought of marrying at all. But, you see--I don't."

"I call that uncommon hard on Fletcher," observed Jack.

She opened her blue eyes very wide. "My dear man, why?"

"After waiting for you all this time," he explained, suffering his arms
to fall away from her.