Jasher declared--would have been too much for her nerves. She
made a very good chaperon, as she allowed the young people to act
as they pleased, only sanctioning the meetings by her elderly
presence.
One evening Mrs. Jasher was due to dinner, and Hope had already
arrived. No one else was expected, as Don Pedro had taken his
daughter to the theatre at Pierside and Sir Frank had gone to
London in connection with his military duties. It was a bitterly
cold night, and already a fall of snow had hinted that there was
to be a real English Christmas of the genuine kind. Lucy had
prepared an excellent dinner for three, and Archie had brought a
set of new patience cards for Mrs. Jasher, who was fond of the
game. While the widow played, the lovers hoped to make love
undisturbed, and looked forward to a happy evening. But there
was one drawback, for although the dinner hour was supposed to be
eight o'clock, and it was now thirty minutes past, Mrs. Jasher
had not arrived. Lucy was dismayed.
"What can be keeping her?" she asked Archie, to which that young
gentleman replied that he did not know, and, what was more, he
did not care. Miss Kendal very properly rebuked this sentiment.
"You ought to care, Archie, for you know that if Mrs.
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