Part 32 (1/2)
”Fro, if you're prosaic, I just shan't talk to you I discovered that I wanted so of standing bare-foot on hot marble! I wanted _you_, Eric! I alant you when I'm happy, because I must share my happiness with some one; and I want you when I'm unhappy, because I'm too proud to shew my unhappiness to any one who doesn't love ain!”
Eric considered her with his head on one side and his hands in his pockets, cautiously and without co himself
”Well, Babs, if you _don't_ always have me at hand for all your moods and all your needs----”
”Yes?”
He turned away to knock the ash froe of expression in her eyes
”My dear, you'll have only yourself to blame”
”I know Bless you, dear Eric So of you all those o down to dinner You've only got me, I'm afraid
Will you be bored?”
”I don't suppose so,” he answered, s; but, indefinably, he was disappointed
2
The Crawleighs spent ato Hampshi+re for the summer
”Make the most of me,” said Barbara, when her father's decision was ain”
”I wonder whether you'd mind,” Eric mused ”Don't you sometimes feel that I've servedtook you out of my life
Say you're sorry this very ly complied, but he could not easily shake off his disappointment that Barbara had co herself to 's naly unreasonable in honouring any superstitious obligation to his ue, resentful ih they plotted to lunch or dine together daily and counted the re hours with jealous concern, Eric was shocked to find himself secretly relieved when Barbara said ”Only another week”
”I've not seen very rumbled inconsistently ”Why don't you dine with one some transformation in the last six months until she seemed hardly to need him In the old days she was a slave to be summoned by a clap of the hands; but, since he had healed her spirit, she was a queen to be courted
”I'll coe Oakleigh And I haven't seen hi you to do that I've chosen an unfortunate day I've chosen rather a lot of unfortunate days lately,” he added
”Is that very gracious, Eric? I've said I'll co need of her struggled confusedly with the resolve to be patient and the politic determination to court her as a queen
”No, you keep to your original plan,” he advised her; and then, with thinly-veiled taunt, ”It's funny to look back on the old days, when you wereD'you remember when you used to say how much you neededat his new irritability
”You got on very comfortably without me at the Cap Martin----”
”I should have been very unco of et on very coh Abbey,” he persisted ”And to-morrow----”