Why had he rashly spoken those hasty words to her in his love, betraying himself into all manner of scrapes, as a schoolboy might do, or such a one as Johnny Eames?
What an ass he had been not to have remembered himself and to have been collected,--not to have bethought himself on the occasion of all that might be due to Adolphus Crosbie! And then the idea came upon him whether he had not altogether made himself an ass in this matter.

And as he gave his arm to Lily outside the church-door, he shrugged his shoulders while making that reflection.
"It is too late now," he said to himself; and than turned round and made some sweet little loving speech to her.

Adolphus Crosbie was a clever man; and he meant also to be a true man,--if only the temptations to falsehood might not be too great for him.
"Lily," he said to her, "will you walk in the fields after lunch ?" Walk in the fields with him! Of course she would.

There were only three days left, and would she not give up to him every moment of her time, if he would accept of all her moments?
And then they lunched at the Small House, Mrs Dale having promised to join the dinner-party at the squire's table.

The squire did not eat any lunch, excusing himself on the plea that lunch in itself was a bad thing.