It should lead to a closer union between all.
Of course, he would need to know more about Berenice and her true relation to Cowperwood.
He had not troubled to investigate as yet.
But even if he found her background not as perfect as it might be, Berenice was still the most fascinating woman he had ever known.
She was certainly not attempting to lure him; it was he who was definitely pursuing her.
At the same time Berenice was at once pleased and troubled by two developments: one the fact that Stane seemed to be so very much interested in her, and the other that since her visit to Tregasal he had suggested, among other things, that she and her mother, together with the Cowperwoods, might join him for a cruise on his yacht, the Iola, before the end of autumn.
The trip could include a stopover at Cowes, where King Edward and Queen Alexandra were likely to be at that time, and he would be glad to present them to their majesties, for both the king and queen were old friends of his father’s.
At the mention of Aileen, Berenice experienced a mental chill.
For if Aileen went on such a cruise, neither she nor her mother could go.
If Aileen did not go, some accident-proof explanation would have to be made to Stane.
If Cowperwood and she together were to accept this invitation, it would mean they would have to reach a diplomatic if not exactly harmonious agreement, and this was not exactly desirable to her at the moment.
If she did not go with him, or went without him, it might mean the elimination of him from her life.
And that again would mean explanations and readjustments probably fatal to all concerned.
In the face of her present resentment toward Cowperwood, she was in no position to decide quickly.
For dream as she might about Stane, it was quite obvious that without Cowperwood’s good will, she was not likely to extricate herself from the various complications which confronted her.
Sufficiently angered, he could destroy her instantly.
Sufficiently indifferent, he might allow Aileen and others to do as much.
Also, in turning all this over in her mind she was confronted by the fact that her temperament as well as her general viewpoint appeared to crave Cowperwood and not Stane.
She was strongest when supplemented by him.
And weighing all that was to be weighed in connection with Stane, there remained the outstanding fact that he did not match Cowperwood in vigor, resourcefulness, naturalness, or the humanness of his approach to life.
And it was these things more than anything else that caused her to realize that she desired to be with Cowperwood more than with anyone else, to hear his voice, to observe his gestures, sense his dynamic and seemingly unterrified approach to life.
It was when he was with her that she felt her own strength magnified and without his brave support what would her personal reactions to all this now be?
It caused her, in the face of Stane’s suggestions, to indulge in no definite comment other than that her guardian could, at times, be strangely perverse and intractable, and that she would be compelled to leave these invitations in abeyance pending his return to England.
At the same time, as she smilingly indicated, she was very much in favor of it.
And if he were willing to leave it to her, perhaps it could be arranged.
A cheerful, if slightly formal, greeting from Berenice, which gave no least hint of difficulties, was waiting for Cowperwood when he reached his hotel.
However, he was one who could not only sense danger but fairly register the vigorous thoughts of others in regard to himself, and he was already aware of inimical moods in her direction.
In fact, long before he reached England, he had been fully convinced that his affair with Lorna was known to Berenice.
He could feel it in the region of his solar plexus. It put him on his guard and sharpened his wits for any possible emergency.
Already he had decided not to attempt evasion in any form, but, rather, feel his way according to Berenice’s mood and manner.
And so, Pryor’s Cove, colored by the mood of autumn, the leaves slightly reddened and yellowed.
There were wreaths of mist on the river, even at noon, the hour of his arrival.
And as he drew near he was most vividly conscious of all the bright summer days he might have spent here with Berenice.
But now the thing to do was to face her frankly; let her once more sense him as he really was.
That method had proved so propitious and effective in connection with other difficulties that he was satisfied to think it might prove so now.
Besides, was there not Stane to balance Lorna?
Guilty or not, Berenice might be made to feel dubious in regard to her own position.
As he drove in, Piggott, the gardener, visible behind a hedge he was trimming, bowed a greeting.
In the paddock adjoining Stane’s stables, the horses were warming themselves in the autumn sun, and about the stable doors two of the grooms were busy with the harness.
Mrs. Carter walked across the lawn to greet him, apparently unaware of the problems that were troubling him and her daughter, for she was all smiles.
From her cheerful welcome, he guessed that Berenice had probably not confided in her.
“Well, how’s everything?” he called out to her, stepping forward and taking her hand.
Berenice, according to her mother, was as well as ever, and now in the music room practicing.
Rimski-Korsakov’s “Market Scenes” heard through the open window confirmed this.
For a moment Cowperwood had the feeling that, as in the case of Aileen, he might have to seek her out and begin some sort of irritating explanation, but as he was so thinking, the music suddenly ceased and she appeared in the doorway, as poised and smiling as ever.
Oh, he was back!
How nice!
How had he been?
Had he had a pleasant voyage?
She was so glad to see him.