Page:The Garden Party (Mansfield).djvu/245

Rh She was just a touch too calm—too steady. From the very first moment

The curtains rang. Janey was back. He jumped to his feet.

“Janey have you been ill on this voyage? You have!”

“Ill?” Her airy little voice mocked him. She stepped over the rugs, came up close, touched his breast, and looked up at him.

“Darling,” she said, “don’t frighten me. Of course I haven’t! Whatever makes you think I have? Do I look ill?”

But Hammond didn’t see her. He only felt that she was looking at him and that there was no need to worry about anything. She was here to look after things. It was all right. Everything was.

The gentle pressure of her hand was so calming that he put his over hers to hold it there. And she said:

“Stand still. I want to look at you. I haven’t seen you yet. You’ve had your beard beautifully trimmed, and you look—younger, I think, and decidedly thinner! Bachelor life agrees with you.”

“Agrees with me!” He groaned for love and caught her close again. And again, as always, he had the feeling he was holding something that never was quite his—his. Something too delicate, too precious, that would fly away once he let go. 241