Part 22 (2/2)
”No, I don't think I am.”
The Nun lay back on a long chair; she was certainly wonderfully pretty as she smiled lazily at Andy.
”You look a size too large for the room,” she remarked. ”Yes, Billy's ambitious. He'd like to marry me, only he's ambitious. It doesn't make any difference to me, because I'm not in love with him; but I'm afraid it's an awfully uncomfortable state of affairs for poor Billy.”
”Well, if he'd have no chance anyhow, couldn't you sort of let him know that?” Andy suggested, much amused at an innocent malice which marked her description of Billy's conflict of feeling.
”No use at all. I've tried. But he's quite sure he could persuade me. In fact I don't think he believes I should refuse if it came to the point.
So there he is, always just pulling up on the brink! He can't like it, but he goes on. Oh, but tell me all about Harry Belfield. Now I've got you off my mind, I'm awfully interested about that.”
Andy was not very ready at description. She a.s.sisted him by a detailed and skilful cross-examination, directed to eliciting full information about Vivien Wellgood's appearance, habits, and character--how old she was, where she had been, what she had seen. When the picture of Vivien had thus emerged--of Vivien's youth and secluded life, how she had been nowhere and seen nothing, how she was timid and shy, innocent and trustful, above all, how she idolized Harry--the Nun considered it for a moment in silence.
”Poor girl!” she said at last. Andy looked sharply at her. She smiled.
”Oh yes, you wors.h.i.+p Harry, don't you? Well, he's a very charming man. I was rather inclined to fall in love with him once myself. Luckily for me I didn't.”
”I'm sure he'd have responded,” Andy laughed.
”Yes, that's just it; he would have! When did you say they were going to be married?”
”October, I think Harry said.”
”Four months! And he dotes on her?”
”I should think so. You should just hear him!”
”I daresay I shall. He always likes talking to one girl about how much he's in love with another.”
The Nun's matter-of-fact way of speaking may have contributed to the effect, but in the end the effect of what she said was to give the impression that she regarded Harry Belfield's present pa.s.sion as one of a series--far from the first, not at all likely to be the last. The inflection of tone with which she had exclaimed ”Four months!” implied that it was a very long while to wait.
”You'd understand it better if you saw them together,” said Andy, eager, as always, to champion his friend.
”You're very enthusiastic about her, anyhow,” smiled the Nun. ”It almost sounds as if you were a little in love with her yourself.”
”Such a thing never occurred to me.” Then he laughed, for the Nun was laughing at him. ”Well, she would make every man want to--well, sort of want to take care of her, you know.”
”Well, there's no harm in your doing that--in moderation; and she may come to want it. Have you ever been in love yourself?”
”Yes, once,” he confessed; ”a long while ago, just before I left South Africa.”
”Got over it?” she inquired anxiously.
”Yes, of course I have, long ago. It wasn't very fatal.”
”Fickle creature!”
Andy gave one of his bursts of hearty laughter to hear himself thus described.
”I like you,” she said; ”and I'm glad you're going in with Gilly, because we shall often see you at lunch-time.”
<script>