But Layelah was quite ready with her reply.
"If you love Almah," said she, "that is the very reason why you should marry me."
This made me feel more embarrassed than ever.
I stammered something about my own feelings—the manners and customs of my race—and the fear that I had of acting against my own principles. "Besides," I added, "I'm afraid it would make you unhappy."
"Oh no," said Layelah, briskly; "on the contrary, it would make me very happy indeed."
I began to be more and more aghast at this tremendous frankness, and was utterly at a loss what to say.
"My father," continued Layelah, "is different from the other Kosekin, and so am I. I seek requital for love, and do not think it an evil."
A sudden thought now suggested itself, and I caught at it as a last resort.
"You have," said I, "some lover among the Kosekin. Why do you not marry him?"
Layelah smiled.