It brought me up with a jerk. It was folly to be serious with her—she was only bantering as usual.
"It's none of my affair, of course," I said with assumed sadness, "but I would like to know how many poor devils have gone down before that smile in the last six years."
"You mean?"
"That you're the most consummate coquette I know."
"Is that a compliment?" she asked.
"That depends."
"Upon what?"
"Upon the way you use your power."
She hesitated a moment. "Have I ever used it improperly to your knowledge?" she asked.
I dodged the question. "You admit the power, then?"