was a great deal more offensive than the other,
and Dahlia got up, her cheeks flushed--

"That is enough, Mr. Trojan. I think this had better come to an end.
I can only repeat what I have said already, that I cannot give you the
letters--and, indeed, if I had ever intended to do so, your last
speech, at least, would have changed my mind--I am sorry that I cannot
oblige you, but there is really nothing further to be said."

He tried to stammer something; he faced her for a moment and
endeavoured to be indignant, and then, to his own intense astonishment,
found that he was walking down the stairs with the drawing-room door
closed behind him. How amazing!--but he had done his best, and, if he
had failed, why, after all, no other man could have succeeded any
better. And she really was rather bewitching--he had not expected
anything quite like that. What had he expected? He did not know, but
he thought of his softly-carpeted, nicely-cushioned room with
pleasurable anticipation. He would fling himself into his book when he
got back ... he had several rather neat ideas.... He noticed, with
pleasure, that the young man standing by the door of Mead's Groceries
touched his hat very respectfully, and Twitchett, his tailor, bowed.
Come, come! There were a few people left who had some sense of Trojan
supremacy. It wasn't such a bad world! He would have tea in his
room--not with Clare--and crumpets--yes, he liked crumpets.

Dahlia went back to her work with a sigh. What, she wondered, would be
the next move? It had not been quite so amusing as she had expected,
but it had been a little more exciting. For she had a curious feeling
in it all, that she was fighting Harry Trojan's battles. These were
the people that had insulted him just as they had insulted her, and now
they would have to pay for it, they would have to go to him as they had
gone to her and crawl on their knees. But what a funny situation!
That she should play the son for the father, and that she should be
able to look at her own love affair so calmly! Poor Robin--he had
taught her a great deal, and now it was time for him to learn his own
lesson. For her the episode was closed and she was looking forward to
the future. She would work and win her way and have done with
sentiment. Friendship was the right thing--the thing that the world
was meant for--but _Love_--Ah! that wounded so much more than it
blessed!

But she was to have further experience