There, leaning
over a gate, the light of the moon falling on her beautiful face,
stood Claire herself!
12
In trying interviews, as in sprint races, the start is everything.
It was the fact that she recovered more quickly from her
astonishment that enabled Claire to dominate her scene with Bill.
She had the advantage of having a less complicated astonishment to
recover from, for, though it was a shock to see him there when she
had imagined that he was in New York, it was not nearly such a
shock as it was to him to see her here when he had imagined that
she was in England. She had adjusted her brain to the situation
while he was still gaping.
'Well, Bill?'
This speech in itself should have been enough to warn Lord Dawlish
of impending doom. As far as love, affection, and tenderness are
concerned, a girl might just as well hit a man with an axe as say
'Well, Bill?' to him when they have met unexpectedly in the
moonlight after long separation. But Lord Dawlish was too shattered
by surprise to be capable of observing _nuances_. If his love had
ever waned or faltered, as conscience had suggested earlier in the
day, it was at full blast now.
'Claire!' he cried.
He was moving to take her in his arms, but she drew back.
'No, really, Bill!' she said; and this time it did filter through
into his disordered mind that all was not well.
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