"No; I dare say not."
"But I'll tell you what I'll do. I'll undertake never to see her again—of my own free will. I'll give you my word of honor—"
She shook her head. "Oh, I'm not asking for that."
"Then what do you ask for? Just tell me, and whatever it is—"
"It's that, since you can't abandon her, you abandon me."
"What?"
She repeated the words more firmly.
"Never."
"Then I'm afraid it will be for me to abandon you." She gave him a little nod. "Good-by."
She had turned and taken a step or two along the pavement before his astonishment allowed him to overtake her.