He rose to the occasion instantly. "I'm sound," he said. "Tell me!"
She had not expected that. He seemed to disconcert her at every turn.
"Thank you," she said, taking refuge in extreme frigidity. "I think not."
"As you like," he said. "I daresay I shouldn't in your place. I only suggested it because I can't see a girl in trouble and pass by on the other side."
He spoke quite quietly, but there was a quality in the soft voice that stirred her very strangely, something that made her for the moment forget the man's dominant personality, and feel as if a woman had uttered the words.
She put out a groping hand to him, obeying a curious impulse that would not be denied.
"Thank you," she said again.
He kept her hand for a second or two, holding it squarely, almost as if he were waiting for something.
Then, without a word, he let it go. She turned back; and he went on.
CHAPTER VI