Honora looked at him in surprise before she said provocatively,

“Perhaps that would be a – mistake.”

“I thought we were to have no secrets between us.”

“Some things are too – secret to tell– anybody.”

“Those are the ones I want to hear.”

“Why?”

He hesitated for a moment before he answered,

“Play to me and I will tell you afterwards.”

“Now I shall certainly be very careful what my fingers say,” she smiled.

He sat listening to her until she said,

“I think as I am a little tired I should go to bed.”

“Yes, of course,” the Duke agreed vaguely.

She had thought that he was thinking of something else and did not like to ask him what it was, but she had wondered about it when she was in bed.

Now this evening she came from the piano towards him saying,

“You sound serious.”

“I am,” the Duke replied.

She was looking, although she did not seem to be aware of it, very lovely in a gown of pale blue gauze.

It was the colour of the summer sky, but instead of being decorated conventionally with pink flowers there were little bunches of small white rose buds that were not yet in bloom.

It occurred to the Duke that they were in fact symbolic of Honora herself.

These few days when they had been alone had told him, as he realised on their wedding-night, that she was not only very young and completely inexperienced but also innocent to the point where she did not even recognise evil, although undoubtedly her instinct could sense it.

It was this innocence that made him know that he wanted to protect her from women like Aline Langstone until he had awakened her gently to the realities of life that she would have to face sooner or later.

Because he was silent, Honora said in a small voice,

“What – is it? Have I done – something wrong?”

“No, of course not,” the Duke answered.

He put out his hand and taking hers drew her down beside him on the sofa.

As he did so, he felt a little tremor go through her and his fingers tightened as he said,

“We have been very happy since we came here, Honora. I am therefore suggesting, unless you dislike the idea very much, that we should go somewhere where we can be even quieter than we are at the moment.”

She looked at him in a puzzled way and he added,

“I am rather afraid that while we are here people will drop into see us.”

He saw a faint colour come into her cheeks and she looked away from him as she said,

“I – heard that Aunt Aline came – here this evening but – that she did not – stay long.”

“No, she came to leave some wedding presents for which we have to write and thank immediately,” the Duke said firmly.

“She – she did not want to – see me?”