"My dear, we can't let it go away from us. It's us, and we're it, and if
anything were to happen to you, and a stranger were to come here!"
"But, my dear mother," he interrupted, "nothing's going to happen to me,
and no one's going to get Boveyhayne away from us. Why should any
one?..."
She put her free hand on his sleeve. "When Roger married Rachel," she
said, "I wished ... I wished that you were Roger, Ninian!"
"You want me to get married, mother?"
She did not answer, but her clasp on his arm tightened.
"A chap can't marry a girl just for the sake of getting married,
mother!..."
"No, dear, I know, but ..."
"I've not seen a girl yet that I wanted particularly. You see, I've been
awfully busy at my job!... I know how you feel, mother, about
Boveyhayne, and I feel like that myself sometimes. I used to think it
was rather rot all this talk about Family and keeping on and ... and
that kind of thing, but I can't help feeling proud of ... of all those
old chaps who went before me, and ... all that, and I'd hate to break
the line ... only I can't just go up to a girl and ... and say, 'We want
some ... some babies in our house!' ..."
"No, dear, you can't say _that_, of course, but there are plenty of nice
girls about, and if you would just ... just think of some of them,
instead of always thinking of works and tunnels and things!... Of
course, I know that tunnels are very interesting, Ninian, but ... but
Boveyhayne!..."
She did not say any more. She stood by the gate of a field, looking over
the valley of the Axe to the hilly country that separates Dorset from
Devon, seeing nothing because her eyes were full of tears. He slipped
his arm from hers and put it round her waist and drew her close to him.
"All right, mother!" he said.
"My dear!" she said, reaching up and kissing him.
11
They dined together on Ninian's last night in England. Rachel, with fine
understanding, insisted that they should dine alone, although they urged
her to join them.
"I say, you chaps," Ninian said to them, "you might go and see my mater
sometimes. She'd be awfully glad. Quinny, you haven't been to Boveyhayne
for centuries. ... If you'd go, now and then, you'd cheer the mater up.
She's awfully down in the mouth about me going!"
"Righto, Ninian!" said Gilbert.
"Mary was saying what a long time it was since you were there, Quinny,"
Ninian went on.
"Did she?" Henry answered.
"Yes. I hope you'll go down sometime."
"I will," he said.