It was the romance of the stolen meeting that charmed Beatrice.
If Hugh had been admitted to the Elms she would have wearied of
him in a week; but the concealment gave her something to think
of. There was something to occupy her mind; every day she must
arrange for a long ramble, so that she might meet Hugh. So,
while the corn grew ripe in the fields, and the blossoms died
away--while warm, luxurious summer ruled with his golden wand
Ronald Earle's daughter went on to her fate.
Chapter XVIII
At length there came an interruption to Hugh Fernely's love
dream. The time drew near when he must leave Seabay. The vessel
he commanded was bound for China, and was to sail in a few days.
The thought that he must leave the beautiful girl he loved so
dearly and so deeply struck him with unendurable pain; he seemed
only to have lived since he had met her, and he knew that life
without her would be a burden too great for him to bear. He
asked himself a hundred times over: "Does she love me?" He could
not tell. He resolved to try. He dared not look that future in
the face which should take her from him.
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