"Was it ... necessarily ... final, Jane?"
Her frank eyes searched his face. "Sometimes I tell myself it ought to be. It's hard.... You see, I love you, Pelham."
"Suppose I came to you, on your terms...."
"I should reserve the right to act as you did, if I ever wished to."
He nodded, trying to make out what was going on within her mind.
"I would tell you, though," she went on. "With that understanding ... yes."
He did not touch her, sensing the physical revulsion she must still feel. His voice trembled in joyful disbelief. "You'll really——"
"I am your wife. And I love you."
Her fingers brushed his hand; he shivered in passionate repression.
"Jane——" A troubled crease roughened his forehead, "I'll try——"