together, Milly's cold hand clasped in mine.

Mr. Darrell was not alone. His wife was sitting with her back to the
window, very pale, and with an angry brightness in her eyes.

'Sit down, Miss Crofton,' Mr. Darrell said very coldly; 'and you,
Milly, come here.'

She went towards him with a slow faltering step, and sank down into
the chair to which he pointed, looking at him all the time in an
eager beseeching way that I think must have gone to his heart. He
was standing with his back to the empty fireplace, and remained
standing throughout the interview.

'I think you know that I love you, Milly,' he began, 'and that your
happiness is the chief desire of my mind.'

'I'm sure of that, papa.'

'And yet you have deceived me.'

'Deceived you? O papa, in what way?'

'By encouraging the hopes of a man whom you must have known I would
never receive as your husband; by suffering your feelings to become
engaged, without one word of warning to me, and in a manner that you
must have known could not fail to be most obnoxious to me.'

'O papa, I did not know; it was only yesterday that Mr. Egerton
spoke for the first time. There has been nothing hidden from you.'