at length forcing herself to speak and to speak cautiously she said with calmness of manner which tolerably well concealed her surprise and solicitude � may i ask if your engagement is of long standing we have been engaged these four years four years yes though greatly shocked still felt unable to believe it i did not know said she that you were even acquainted till the other day our acquaintance however is of many years date he was under my uncle s care you know a considerable while your uncle sense and yes mr did you never hear him talk of mr i think i have replied with an exertion of spirits which increased with her increase of emotion he was four years with my uncle who lives at near it was there our begun for my sister and me was often staying with my uncle and it was there our engagement was formed though not till a year after he had quitted as a pupil but he was almost always with us afterwards i was very unwilling to enter into it as you may imagine without the knowledge and approbation of his mother but i was too young and loved him too well to be so prudent as i ought have been though you do not know so well as me miss you must have seen enough of him to be sensible he is very capable of making a woman sincerely attached to him certainly answered without knowing what she said but after a moment s reflection she added with revived security of edward s honour and love and her companion s falsehood � engaged to mr edward � i confess so totally surprised at what you tell me that really � i beg your pardon but surely there must be some mistake of person or name we cannot mean the same mr we can mean no other cried smiling mr edward the eldest son of mrs of park street and brother of your sister in law mrs john is the person i mean you must allow that am not likely to be deceived as to the name of the man on whom all my happiness depends it is strange replied in a most painful perplexity that i should never have heard him even mention your name no considering our situation it was not strange our first care has been to keep the matter secret you knew nothing of me or my family and therefore there could be no occasion for ever mentioning my name to you and as he was always particularly afraid of his sister s suspecting any thing that was reason enough for his not mentioning it she was silent s security sunk but her self did not sink with it four years you have been engaged said she with a firm voice sense and yes and heaven knows how much longer we may have to wait poor edward it puts him quite out of heart then taking a small miniature from her pocket she added to prevent the possibility of mistake be so good as to look at this face it does not do him justice to be sure but yet i think you cannot be deceived as to the person it was drew for i have had it above these three years she put it into her hands as she spoke and when saw the painting whatever other doubts her fear of a too hasty decision or her wish of falsehood might suffer to linger in her mind she could none of its being edward s face she returned it almost instantly acknowledging the likeness i have never been able continued to give him my picture in return which i am very much vexed at for he has been always so anxious to get it but i am determined to sit for it the very first opportunity you are quite in the right replied calmly they then proceeded a few paces in silence spoke first i am sure said she i have no doubt in the world of your faithfully keeping this secret because you must know of what importance it is to us not to have it reach his mother for she would never approve of it i dare say i shall h ve no fortune and i fancy she is an exceeding proud woman v i certainly did not seek your confidence said but you do me no more than justice in imagining that i may be depended on your secret is safe with me but pardon me if i express some surprise at so unnecessary a communication you must at least have felt that my being acquainted with it could not add to its safety as she said this she looked earnestly at hoping to discover something in her countenance perhaps the falsehood of the greatest part of what she had been saying but s countenance suffered no change i was afraid you would think i was taking a great liberty with you said she in telling you all this i have not known you long to be sure personally at least but i have known you and all your family by description a great while and as soon as i saw you i felt almost as if you was an old acquaintance besides in the present case i really thought and sensibility some explanation was due to you after my making such particular about edward s mother and i am so unfortunate that i have not a creature whose advice i can ask anne is the only person that knows of it and she has no judgment at all indeed she does me a great deal more harm than good for i am in constant fear of her betraying me she does not know how to hold her tongue as you must perceive and i am sure i was in the greatest fright in the world t other day 