Do you"-- sharply--"think that ?" "Of course I don't!" she burst out indignantly.
"Then why trouble?
Possibly the matter concerns some one else besides himself, and he may not be at liberty to tell you anything--he might have a dozen different reasons for keeping his own counsel.

And the woman who loves him and is ready to be his wife is the first to doubt and, distrust him! Diana, you ought to be ashamed of yourself.

If my wife"-- his voice shook a little---"had ever doubted me--no matter how black things might have looked against me--I think it would have broken my heart." Diana's head drooped lower and lower as he spoke, and presently her hand stole out, seeking his.

In a moment it was taken and held in a close and kindly clasp.
"I'll--I'll marry him, Pobs," she whispered.
So it came about that when, two days later, Max took his way to 24 Brutton Square, the gods had better gifts in store for him than he had dared to hope.
He was pacing restlessly up and down her little sitting-room when she entered it, and she could see that his face bore traces of the last few days' anxiety.

There were new lines about his mouth, and his eyes were so darkly shadowed as to seem almost sunken in their sockets.
"You have come back!" he said, stepping eagerly towards her.
"Diana"-- there was a note of strain in his voice--"which is it?
Yes--or no ?" She held out her hands.
"It's--it's 'yes,' Max." A stifled exclamation broke from him, almost like a sob.