Page:Between Two Loves.djvu/47

42 no terms of capitulation of which she can conceive.

In the midst of a very unsatisfactory conversation Aske entered. He was a small, slight man of fair complexion, with an honest, kindly face, and a pleasant shrewdness in the eyes. Jonathan could have carried him almost as easily as a child, but inches and weight were no indication of the real man. The real Anthony Aske was self-poised, quickly observant, and cool-headed, without being cold. He had a refined mouth, a wilful chin, and those wide-open gray eyes, with the bluish tint of steel in them, that always indicate a resolute and straightforward character. He looked at Eleanor as he entered the room, and his glance roused and irritated her, but she met it fearlessly, with her handsome head a little on one side and perceptibly lifted, and a smile which was at once attractive and provoking.

Aske had a great respect for his father-in-law, and no intention whatever of making him a partner in his domestic troubles. To tell the truth, he was not seriously uneasy about them. He had anticipated some difficulty in transforming the spoiled daughter into an obedient,