"With one exception," he answered quietly. "I will not take you back to Maritas."
She shivered. "Then where, monsieur?"
His expression changed slightly. She had a momentary glimpse of the arrogance she dreaded.
"The world is wide," he said. "And there is plenty of time before us. We need not decide to-night."
She trembled more at the tone than the words. "I did not think you would leave Maritas so soon," she murmured.
"Why not, mademoiselle?" His voice suddenly rang hard; it almost held a threat.
She had withdrawn herself from him, but she was hardly capable of standing alone. She leaned secretly against the chair from which she had just risen.
"Because," she made answer, still desperately facing him, "I thought that Maritas wanted you."
He uttered a brief laugh that sounded savage.
"That was yesterday," he told her grimly. "I have forfeited my popularity since then."