360
said Robina.
'Yes. Let me have her alone at first. Come back in ten minutes' time.'
He was still sitting on the bench, with his elbows on his knees, and his hands over his brow, when Angela came towards him. She was of the same long-limbed make as Clement, was nearly as tall as the square sturdy Robina nearly three years older, and had Clement's small, almost baby mould of features, relieved only by such arch deep blue eyes as shone in Edgar's face. She looked such a mere child, that when her step and exclamation caused Felix to raise his head, it seemed absurd to imagine her to be knowingly engaged as go-between in a clandestine correspondence, and with a sort of pity and compunction for the blame he had intended, he held out his arms to her.
'O Felix, how cold you are! Your face is like marble. Now if I was to sit there, in this weather, wouldn't they be at me like wild cats?'
Thus reminded, Felix rose, and certainly shivered after the exercise of his privilege. 'Are you happy here, Angel?' he asked in a constrained tone.
'Yes, it is jollier than Miss Pearson's. There are more girls, and we do have such fun!'
'I hope you are good and steady, and very careful of all the rules.'
Angela fidgeted, as if she didn't like the style of the conversation.
'You know,' he continued, 'there may be rules that you may not see the use of, but that must be obeyed for all that.'
'What a tiresome dry old Blunderbore you are!' broke out Angela, with ill-assured sauciness; 'this isn't the way Edgar goes on when he comes to see us.'
Felix could not check a sort of groan or grunt; and Angela, whose pertness was defensive, quailed a little. She had driven him out of the due sequence of his discourse, but he resumed it. 'Angel, I must tell you; if anybody asks you to break rules--by giving letters--you must not'
Angela kicked pebbles about.
'Have you ever been asked to do so?'
She hung her head, and a pout came over her face.