She had lived through it all long ago in what seemed to her now another life.
For a moment she was silent; and when she spoke again there was an anxious sound in her voice and an anxious look in the eyes she lifted to the arching boughs of the sycamore.

"Do you like Stephen very much, Patty ?" she asked.
Though Corinna did not see it, a glow that was like the flush of dawn broke over the girl's sensitive face.

"He is so superior," she began as if she were repeating a phrase she had learned to speak; then in a low voice she added impulsively, "Oh, very much!" "He is a dear boy," returned Corinna, really troubled.

"Do you see him often ?" Now, since she felt she had won the girl's confidence, her purpose appeared more difficult than ever.
"Very often," replied Patty in a thrilling tone.

"He comes every day." The luminous candour, the fearless sincerity of Gideon Vetch, seemed to envelop her as she answered.
"Do you think he cares for you, dear ?" asked Corinna softly.
"Oh, yes." The response was unhesitating.