But he knew the world was creeping up on him, on Charlotte and on the little niche of it they had thought was their own; and he watched the approach with a sadness he could not even speak of to Charlotte.
The fall semester began this September in a colorful Indian summer that came after an early frost. Smith returned to his classes with a zeal he had not felt in a long time; even the prospect of facing a hundred freshman faces didn't cloud the renewal of his energy.
His life with Charlotte largely went on as before, except that with the return of the students and many faculty members, he found it necessary to exercise prudence. During the summer the old house where Charlotte lived had been almost deserted; they had been able to be together in almost total isolation without fear of being
