She covered her face with her hands. He dragged them down, and crushed them under his own hands on her knees.
"Pen!" he gasped. "It breaks my heart to see you! What is the matter?"
She strained away from him. "Nothing!" she said crossly. "I'm not the sort that cries!"
"But you're crying now. I see your tears!"
"It's nothing. I'm just nervous. Don't notice me."
"Oh Pen, I love you so!" he groaned. "It kills me to see your tears!"
She looked at him with a kind of horror.
He dropped his head in her lap. "There it's out!" he groaned. "All evening I've been fighting against it. Every night I've been with you. I swore I wouldn't tell you. But here I am ... just like a baby. God knows I'll regret it to-morrow!"
"But why?" she gasped.
"Because it drives me wild to think of bringing unhappiness into your life. I'd sooner jump off the wharf yonder. It's unmanly to tell you now!"