nearly six o'clock
`` I am sure we shall be able to do all that your ladyship wishes , '' he said , politely . `` You shall have information in a day or two . '' Whereat Lady Caroline looked satisfied . It was nearly six o'clock when she reached home , and her absence had caused some astonishment in the house . Tea had been carried out as usual to the seats under the cedar-tree on the lawn , and Mr. Adair 's two sisters were being waited on by Margaret , fair and innocent-looking as usual , in her pretty summer gown . Lady Caroline 's white eyelids veiled a glance of sudden sharpness , as she noticed her daughter 's unruffled serenity . Margaret puzzled her .