"Will you return to America?" she queried.
"I shall idle in Paris for a while. I have an idea that there will be war one of these days."
"And which side will you take?"
"I should be a traitor if I fought for France; I should be an ingrate if I fought against her. I should be a spectator, a neutral."
"That would expose you to danger without the right to strike a blow in defense."
"If I were hurt it would be but an accident. War correspondents would run a hundred more risks than I. Oh, I should be careful; I know war too well not to be."
"All this is strange talk for a man who is a confessed lover."
"Pardon me!" his eyes rather empty.
"Why, you tell me there is a woman; and all your talk is about war and danger. These are opposites; please explain."
"There is a woman, but she will not hinder me in any way. She will, in fact, know nothing about it."