When she returned there was a sunbonnet on her head, and she had
pinned the poppies on her breast. (Why? I couldn't tell you, unless
when all is said and done, be he king or valet, a man is always a
man; and if perchance he is blessed with good looks, a little more
than a man. You will understand that in this instance I am trying to
view things through a woman's eyes.) With a nod she bade him precede
her, and they went out toward the stables. She noted the flat back,
the square shoulders, the easy, graceful swing of the legs.

"Have you been a soldier?" she asked suddenly.

He wheeled. His astonishment could not be disguised quickly enough to
escape her vigilant eyes. Once more he had recourse to the truth.

"Yes, Madam. It was as a trooper that I learned horsemanship."

"What regiment?"

"I prefer not to say,"--quietly.

"I do not like mysteries,"--briefly.

"Madam, you have only to dismiss me, to permit me to thank you for
paying my fine and to reimburse you at the earliest opportunity."

She closed her lips tightly. No one but herself knew what had been on
the verge of passing across them.

"Let us proceed to the stables," was all she said. "If you prove