ten o'clock
And a few hours later , perchance , he would return to find a girl with wistful eyes and speech of tenderness , with no thought `` that is not for the king , '' she told him once . No word of marriage was spoken between them ; if Katrine thought such an event possible , she gave no sign , spoke no word concerning it . If he came early , she welcomed him with shining eyes ; if he were late , this incomprehensible person bestowed upon him exactly the same smile and glance she would have given had he come two hours before . `` I have kept you waiting for me , I am afraid , '' he said one day , when he had kept an engagement he had made for ten o'clock at a quarter of twelve . That morning she had been studying ; not tones , but German Church music , and already she had realized , unformulatedly , the solace in the exercise of a great gift ; had found that she could forget trouble in the world of inspired work ; not for long , perhaps , but long enough to have peace of mind restored to her and strength to go on for another day . `` It did n't matter , '' she said . `` I practised .