"May I know what it is?"
"Yes, child. Love."
Dionetta blushed crimson from forehead to throat, and the Advocate's wife laughed, and tapped her cheek.
"You are very pretty, Dionetta; it is right you should have a pretty name. Do you mean to tell me you have not a lover?"
"I have been asked, my lady," said the girl, in a tone so low that it could only just be heard.
"And you said 'yes'? Little one, I have caught you."
"My lady, I did not say 'yes.'"
"And the men were contented? They must be dolts. Really and truly, you have not a lover?"
"What can I say, my lady?" murmured Dionetta, her head bent down. "There are some who say they--love me."
"But you do not love them?"