"Don't look so scared!" he said.
She smiled at him faintly in silence.
"I gather you don't enjoy this sort of bear-fight," he said.
She remained silent. The man disconcerted her. She was burningly conscious that she had not been too discreet in taking him even so far into her confidence.
He leaned slowly forward, fixing her with those relentless, lynx-like eyes. "Miss Brian," he said, his voice very level, faultlessly distinct. "I'm rough, no doubt, but please believe I'm white!"
She looked at him, startled, unhappy, not knowing what to say.
He nodded, still watching her. "Don't you forget it!" he said. "There are plenty of beasts in the world, but I'm not one of 'em. You'll drink champagne, of course."
He got up to procure it, and Maud managed in the interval to recover some of her composure.
When he came back, she mustered a smile and thanked him.
"You look fagged out," he said, as he filled her glass. "What have you been doing?"