oom. She was standing, her breath coming
fast, her eyes blazing. "You are--_frightful_!" she exclaimed in a low
voice.

"Because I am frank, because I am honest? Because I want to put things on
a sound basis? I suppose, if I came lying and pretending, and let you lie
and pretend, and let your parents and Sam lie and pretend, you would find
me--almost tolerable. Well, I'm not that kind. When there's no especial
reason one way or the other, I'm willing to smirk and grimace and dodder
and drivel, like the rest of your friends, those ladies and gentlemen. But
when there's business to be transacted, I am business-like. Let's not begin
with your thinking you are deceiving me, and so hating me and despising me
and trying to keep up the deception. Let's begin right."

She was listening; she was no longer longing to fly from the room; she was
curious. I knew I had scored.

"In any event," I continued, "you would have married for money. You've been
brought up to it, like all these girls of your set. You'd be miserable
without luxury. If you had your choice between love without luxury and
luxury without love, it'd be as easy to foretell which you'd do as to
foretell how a starving poet would choose between a loaf of bread and a
volume of poems. You may love love; but you love life--your kind of
life--better!"

She lowered her head. "It is true," she said. "It is low and vile, but it
is true."

"Your parents need money--" I began.

She stopped me with a gesture. "Don't blame them," she pleaded. "I am more
guilty than they."

I was proud of her as she made that confession. "You have the making of a
real woman in you," said I. "I should have wanted you even if you hadn't.
But what I now see makes what I thought a folly of mine look more like
wisdom."

"I must warn you," she said, and now she was looking directly at me, "I
shall never love you."

"Never is a long time," replied I. "I'm old enough to be cynical about
prophecy."

"I shall never love you," she repeated. "For many reasons you wouldn't
understand. For one you will understand."

"I understand the 'many reasons' you say are beyond me," said I. "For,
dear young lady, under this coarse exterior I assure you there's hidden
a rather sharp outlook on human nature--and--well, nerves that respond
to the faintest changes in you as do mine can't be altogether without
sensitiveness. What's the other reason--_the_ reason? That you think
you love some one else?"

"Thank