"I'm inclined to agree with you. In spite of that, he's a man whose
acquaintance is worth cultivating."

He passed on to speak to Nairn; and shortly afterward Vane sat down
beside Jessy in a corner of a big room. Looking out across the veranda,
he could see far-off snowy heights tower in cold silver tracery against
the green of the evening sky. Voices and laughter reached him, and now
and then some of the guests strolled through the room. It was pleasant to
lounge there and feel that Miss Horsfield had taken him under her wing,
which seemed to describe her attitude toward him. She was handsome, and
he noticed how finely the soft, neutral tinting of her attire, which was
neither blue nor altogether gray, matched the azure of her eyes and
emphasized the dead-gold coloring of her hair.

"As Mrs. Nairn tells me you are going to England, I suppose we shall not
see you in Vancouver for some months," she said presently. "This city
really isn't a bad place to live in."

Vane felt gratified. She had implied that he would be an acquisition and
had included him among the number of her acquaintances.

"I fancy that I shall find it a particularly pleasant place," he
responded. "Indeed, I'm inclined to be sorry that I've made arrangements
to leave it very shortly."

"That is pure good-nature," laughed his companion.

"No; it's what I really feel."