He looked at her in amazement. "But, my dear, you must realize that we can't afford a place like this—yet. It's ridiculous. I know something about what such houses rent for. They get a thousand a month for some of them. You must be joking."
There was a childlike pout upon Carmelita's flower-mouth and she came closer to him in the gloaming and fingered the lapel of his coat. "I'm not doing anything extravagant, dearest. I have the money. When you telephoned me that there was a letter home from my father's lawyers, I knew what it was. It was money due me from my mother's estate. More than enough to pay for this house for the entire season and give me much more besides. Why, I'm rich, Dudley. I had set my heart upon the cottage and when I knew I could afford it I went right out and signed the lease. So, you see, everything is all right."
But if she expected Dudley to be satisfied, she was doomed to disappointment. Strong pride was one of his characteristics. He had determined to make good in business for Carmelita's sake, and he would be soon, he felt now, in a position to give her almost anything she wanted. Just a few months more. Her family's wealth and his own pennilessness had been the only thing that had prevented him from telling her he loved her that first night
