He was a tall, sunburned young fellow, with powerful shoulders and an easy, free-limbed carriage; he was also soaking wet and streaked with mud.
"Upon my word," he said, "I never saw you! Awf'lly sorry; hope I haven't spoiled your sport--but I have. You were fishing, of course?"
"No, I was only looking," she said. "Of course I've spoiled your sport."
"Not at all," he said, laughing; "that alder twig did for me."
"But there was a trout lying there--I saw him; and the trout saw me, so of course he wouldn't rise to your cast. And I'm exceedingly sorry," she ended, smiling in spite of herself.
Her hair was badly rumpled; she had been crying, and he could see it, but he had never looked upon such tear-stained, smiling, and dishevelled loveliness.
As he looked and marvelled, her smile died out; it came to her with a distinct shock that this water-logged specimen of sun-tanned manhood must be Crawford.
"_Are_ you?" she said, scarcely aware that she spoke.
"Why, yes--and, of course, you are Miss Castle," he replied, smiling easily. "I saw your name in the guest-book this morning. Awf'lly glad you came, Miss Castle; hope you'll let me show you where the big fellows lie."
"You mean the fish," she said, with composure.
The shock of suddenly realizing that this man was the man she had to marry confused her; she made an effort to get things back into proper perspective, for the river was swimming before her eyes, and in her ears rang a strangely pleasant voice--Crawford's--saying all sorts of good-humored things, which she heard but scarcely comprehended.
Instinctively she raised her hands to touch her disordered hair; she stood there naïvely twisting it into shape again, her eyes constantly reverting to the sun-tanned face before her.
"And I have the pleasure of knowing your guardian, Mr. Garcide, very slightly--in a business way," he was saying, politely.
"Oh, we are making a great battle," he said. "I'm only hoping we may come to an understanding with Mr. Garcide."
"I thought you had already come to an understanding," she observed, calmly.
"Have we? I hope so; I had not heard that," he said, quickly. "How did you hear?"
Without warning she flushed scarlet to her neck; and she was as amazed as he at the surging color staining her white skin.
