Coming from Fritz it
won its pardon easily by having a brother, "Damn."
She wondered how long her husband would be ruled by his sense of outrage.
Towards seven she heard another movement; another indignant exclamation,
then the creak of furniture, a step, a rattling at the door. She turned
on her side towards the wall, shut her eyes and breathed lightly and
regularly. The key revolved, the door opened and closed, and she heard
feet shuffling cautiously over the carpet. A moment and Fritz was in bed.
Another moment, a long sigh, and he was asleep.
Lady Holme still lay awake. Now that her attention was no longer fixed
upon her husband's immediate proceedings she began to wonder again what
had happened between him and Rupert Carey. She would find out in the
morning.
And presently she too slept.
CHAPTER IX
IN the morning Lord Holme woke very late and in a different humour. Lady
Holme was already up, sitting by a little table and pouring out tea, when
he stretched himself, yawned, turned over, uttered two or three booming,
incohorent exclamations, and finally raised himself on one arm,
exhibiting a touzled head and a pair of blinking eyes, stared solemnly at
his wife's white figure and at the tea-table, and ejaculated:
"Eh?"
"Tea?" she returned, lifting up the silver teapot and holding it towards
him with an encouraging, half-playful gesture.
Lord Holme yawned again, put up his hands to his hair, and then looked
steadily at the teapot, which his wife was moving about in the sunbeams
that were shining in at the window.
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