"You have no constitutional shyness to put aside, Lord Bobby," said Lady Farley; "so your sacrifice to the common weal is not so stupendous after all."
"How you misjudge me!" sighed Lord Robert. "It is ever my fate to be misjudged by my dearest and best! Shyness is my bane, my besetment; and it is only my exquisite unselfishness which enables me to overcome it as I do, in order to make other people happy by the uninterrupted flow of my improving conversation. And this is all the thanks I get."
"I suppose everybody feels shy sometimes," said Miss Carnaby.
"Not everybody," argued Lord Robert, "take my word for it, you never do."
"Yes I do, under certain circumstances."
"When? do tell us," besought Violet Esdaile.
Isabel thought for a moment. "I am shy of people who make me feel things," she replied slowly.
"Do you mean you feel shy of a man if you think he is going to make you an offer, or to pull one of your teeth out?" inquired Lord Robert with friendly interest.
"Roughly speaking, yes."
"That's a pity! Because in either case it is sport to them, you see; so it is unfortunate if it is death to you."