Page 146 (1/2)

"What lovely flowers!" she said They were the first words she had

spoken to me directly

"I wondered ould be your favorites You must tell me for the

future I just had roses because they happen to be mine"

"I like roses best too"

I was silent for quite two minutes She tried to keep still, then I

spoke, and I could hear a tone of authority in lasses, as I told you

before, I know that you wear theht or anything To keep thenified and ridiculous now, and irritates htened herself

"To reain You should have made

it a condition if you had wanted to iht to ask me to take them off, and I prefer to wear

them"

"For what possible reason?"

"I will not tell you"

I feltIf I had not been a cripple I could not have

resisted the temptation to rise and seize her in s off! and punish her with a thousand kisses As it was, I felt

an inward rage What a fool I had been not to have actually ned the contract!

"It is very ungenerous of you, and shows a spirit of hostility which I

think we agreed that you would drop"

Silence