Hal felt it useless to prevaricate, and so she said, with assumed lightness:
“Well, it has been a little sudden, and we had some jolly times together.”
“Then he is engaged?”
“Yes.”
She told him briefly why. Dick watched her with a question in his eyes.
“Did he deliberately get engaged to the other girl, knowing he cared for you?” he asked.
Hal tried to lie.
“Oh, there was nothing of that sort between him and me. We were just good pals. But of course it can’t go on the same.”
“You’re not a clever liar, Hal,” he said, with a little smile.
She coloured and bit her lip, with an uneasy laugh. Then the tears shone again.