"No," said Basil, firmly; but a smile began to twitch about his lips.
Quick now, as ever, to see the joint in a man's armor, Sophy smiled too.
"If you'd let me through, I'd give you a kiss," she said, offering the only thing she had to give in all the world.
"You would, would you? But I hate kisses. In fact, I hate girls all round—big and little."
"You don't hate Julia, do you?"
"Yes, worst of all."
"Oh!" said Sophy—once more the recording, registering "Oh!"—because Julia had given quite another impression, and Sophy sought to reconcile these opposites.
The young man jumped down from the gate, with a healthy laugh at himself and at her, caught her up in his arms, and gave her a smacking kiss.
"That's toll," he said. "Now you can go through, missy."
"Thank you, Mr. Basil. It's not very hard to get through, is it?"