'I've always been pale and thin.' Lady Assher was sure camomile tea would make all the difference in the world--Caterina must see if it wouldn't--and then went dribbling on like a leaky shower-bath, until the early entrance of the gentlemen created a diversion, and she fastened on Sir Christopher, who probably began to think that, for poetical purposes, it would be better not to meet one's first love again, after a lapse of forty years.
Captain Wybrow, of course, joined his aunt and Miss Assher, and Mr.
Gilfil tried to relieve Caterina from the awkwardness of sitting aloof and dumb, by telling her how a friend of his had broken his arm and staked his horse that morning, not at all appearing to heed that she hardly listened, and was looking towards the other side of the room.

One of the tortures of jealousy is, that it can never turn its eyes away from the thing that pains it.
'By-and-by every one felt the need of a relief from chit-chat--Sir Christopher perhaps the most of all--and it was he who made the acceptable proposition-- 'Come, Tina, are we to have no music to-night before we sit down to cards?
Your ladyship plays at cards, I think ?' he added, recollecting himself, and turning to Lady Assher.
'O yes! Poor dear Sir John would have a whist-table every night.' Caterina sat down to the harpsichord at once, and had no sooner begun to sing than she perceived with delight that Captain Wybrow was gliding towards the harpsichord, and soon standing in the old place.

This consciousness gave fresh strength to her voice; and when she noticed that Miss Assher presently followed him with that air of ostentatious admiration which belongs to the absence of real enjoyment, her closing _bravura_ was none the worse for being animated by a little triumphant contempt.
'Why, you are in better voice than ever, Caterina,' said Captain Wybrow, when she had ended.

'This is rather different from Miss Hibbert's small piping that we used to be glad of at Farleigh, is it not, Beatrice ?' 'Indeed it is.

You are a most enviable creature, Miss Sarti--Caterina--may I not call you Caterina?
for I have heard Anthony speak of you so often, I seem to know you quite well.