He bit his lip and
avoided her eyes. It was hard to yield, and to yield so quickly, as it
seemed to him.
"How long will you stay away?" he asked in a constrained voice.
"I shall not come back at all."
He wondered at the firmness of her tone and manner. Whatever the real
ground of her resolution might be, the resolution itself had gained
strength since they had parted little more than an hour earlier. The
belief suddenly grew upon him again that she did not love him.
"Why are you going at all?" he asked abruptly. "If you loved me at all,
you would stay."
She drew a sharp breath and clasped her hands nervously together.
"I should stay if I loved you less. But I have told you--I will not go
over it all again. This must end--this saying good-bye! It is easier to
end it at once."
"Easier for you--"
"You do not know what you are saying. You will know some day. If you can
bear this, I cannot."
"Then stay--if you love me, as you say you do."
"As I say I do!"
Her eyes grew very grave and sad as she stopped and looked at him again.
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