“Hullo, Berry,” said Nicholas, taking his hand. “Nice of you to come
up.”
“Yes, isn’t it touching?” said Berry.
Nicholas turned to Susan, staring, big-eyed.
“This, dear, is Major Pleydell—a very old friend. Berry, this is
Susan—Miss Susan Crail. She’s just promised to be my wife.”
Berry Pleydell smiled. Then he took Susan’s hand.
“My dear,” he said, “this is most fortunate. You can do me a little
service. Listen. When I was last at Ruth—about four years ago, I sent a
good-looking pair of bed-socks to the Castle dairy. Well, I had to go
before the wash came back, and in spite of repeated applications to His
Grace the Duke of Culloden my property has never been restored. Now,
when you get there, go through his rotten things, and——”
“_The Duke of Culloden?_” cried Susan. “But . . .” The sentence died
there, and she looked from one to the other with fright in her eyes.
Then she addressed her swain. “Are _you_,” she breathed, “are _you_ the
Duke of Culloden?”
“Yes, dear,” said Nicholas John.
To style the sensation ‘profound’ conveys nothing at all.
Susan felt rather faint. Her fellow-guests, standing like drugged sheep,
seemed to be bent upon at once avoiding one another’s gaze and
ascertaining one another’s demeanour. Only their eyes shifted, their
heads and bodies remaining perfectly still. As for Labotte, the
consciousness that he had publicly insulted a Duke, harrassed a future
Duchess, and for the last seven days conspicuously licked a rank
impostor all over seemed to have affected his reason. He staggered to a
doorway, collided with and ricochetted from the jamb, kicked the latter
savagely, screamed and disappeared. . . .
Major Pleydell was speaking.
“But didn’t you know?” he said.
Susan could only shake her head.
“Bless my soul,” said Berry. “Never mind. Let’s drown it in drink.
Besides, it’s not his fault. Only . . .”
“What?” said Susan.
Berry laid a hand on Nicholas’ shoulder.
“Well,” he said, “if it isn’t because of his title, what are you
marrying him for?”
Susan and Nicholas laughed.
“_Noblesse oblige_,” they said.