At any rate, I thought then that I had. As for
that young friend of yours--but he's nothing. It's you I want to make my
peace with."
"It's not difficult," she said. "I tell you that I don't bear any malice.
I bore none at the time. I wanted to go."
He let her hand slide from his, and plunged his own into his pockets. "I
know you did; I felt that at the time. That hurt me a good bit. I had come
to rely upon you so much--oh, for every mortal thing. I expect the whole
place has gone to the devil now. You had your hand on the tiller, by Jove!
You kept a straight course, You see, I'd got into the way of thinking we
were--married, don't you know, and all that---"
"I think you had, indeed," she said. He saw her wry smile.
"I know what you mean by that. You mean, if that's marriage--many thanks!
Well, my dear, all I can say is, you were absolutely wrong. It was _not_
marriage--it never had been, and you know it couldn't have been. But if it
had been, Sancie, you'd have been as right as rain. You know you would.
Your own place--everything to your hand--Society--all that kind of thing.
Why, you'd never have thought it amiss in me to go off tiger-shooting for
a bit. You'd have had your whack of travelling, playing the grass widow;
you'd have entertained, had all sorts of little games--and both of us been
all the better.
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