It was as if the flood of her emotion had risen to a wave and at his words frozen on its crest. She opened her lips to speak, but could only regard him with eyes as hard as ice-fields.
"Now, now, Mae, don't look thataway. You're a sensible woman and know the world's just built thataway. I always told you it don't cost us men nothing but loose change to show ourselves a good time. You girls gotta pay up in different coin. If I hadn't come along some other fellow would, so what's the use a fellow not showing himself a good time? You girls know where you get off. Come, be a sport, old girl! With thirty-five hundred in your jeans and me wanting to do the square thing—the piano and all, lemme say to you that you 'ain't got a kick coming. Just lemme say that to you—piano and all, Mae!"
Sobs trembled up, thawing the edge of ice that incased her. A thin blur of tears rose to her eyes like a premonitory ripple before the coming of the wind.
"You can't! You can't! You—you can't ditch me like that, I tell you.
You—"
"By God! if you're going to begin to holler I'll get out of here so quick it'll make your head swim!"
"Oh no, you don't! Aw, no, you don't! You ain't going to quit so easy for a squint-eyed little hank that—that your old woman found for you. Max, you ain't! You wouldn't! Tell me you wouldn't, dear. Tell me! Tell me!"
"Get off your knees there and behave yourself, Mae! Looka your dress there, all torn. This ain't no barroom. Get up and behave yourself! Ain't you ashamed! Ain't you ashamed!"
She was trembling so that her knees sent little ripples down the tight white silk drop-skirt.
"You can't ditch me like this and get away with it. You and me can't—can't part peaceful. You can't throw me over after all these years for a little squint-eyed hank and get away with it! By Heaven! you can't!"
He drew tight fists to his sides, his lower jaw shot forward. "You start a row here and, by gad! if I don't—"