Operetta, to Bertram, meant interruptions, interferences, and the constant presence of Arkwright, the Greggorys, and innumerable creatures who wished to rehearse or to change wigs--all of which Bertram abhorred.

No wonder, therefore, that he smiled, and that the frown disappeared from his brow.

He thought he saw, ahead, serene, blissful days for Billy and himself.
As the days, however, began to pass, one by one, Bertram Henshaw found them to be anything but serene and blissful.

The operetta, with its rehearsals and its interruptions, was gone, certainly; but he was becoming seriously troubled about Billy.
Billy did not act natural.

Sometimes she seemed like her old self; and he breathed more freely, telling himself that his fears were groundless.
Then would come the haunting shadow to her eyes, the droop to her mouth, and the nervousness to her manner that he so dreaded.