future “blockading” action the precious pair might attempt.

He took Heloise up to the boat deck, and found chairs and placed them in a spot that could only accommodate two, which was also quite neatly screened from casual view. He sighed, “Oh, well, this is very much better.”

“It isn’t strolling, anyhow,” laughed Heloise.

“Oh, I didn’t want to stroll, I just wanted to be selfish,” smiled Clement. “I wanted you to myself. There seem to have been millions of people about you ever since we came aboard.”

“Scarcely millions,” she smiled back. “Only my companion and that rather stout, quite pleasant Mr. Neuburg.” 

[Pg 48]

[Pg 48]

“Only those,” said Clement, underlining the personality and the actions of the pair deliberately, “but they do seem to be rather clinging.... Always there seems to be a great crowd barring the way....”

“Always,” she laughed. “But we’ve only been on board half a day.”

“Perhaps I was looking forward,” said Clement, ingeniously emphasizing his point. “I saw it happening every day, every hour of the day, for the rest of the voyage.”

“You’re unnecessarily gloomy,” laughed the girl, not altogether displeased at the interest this good-looking young man took in her. “It won’t happen every hour every day.”

And Clement, with an inward chuckle, thought it wouldn’t. He left it at that. He had won that trick. Not merely would he have tête-à-tête talks with Heloise in the future, but he had so emphasized the attitude of the pair of rogues that their attempts to shut him out from Heloise must only engender suspicion in her mind.

After a moment’s silence Heloise said, “You’re rather hard on Mr. Neuburg. He’s a very pleasant person, and quite well-informed about Canada.”

“I’m quite well-informed about Canada myself,” said Clement.

“About shooting—sport”—she teased him.

“That—and other things,” Clement laughed back. “I know appearances are against me, but,[Pg 49] really, there’s a solid core inside. I know quite a lot about Canadian industries, for instance.”

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