"Perchance—yes! Verily I say unto you that unless you wear red hosiery in the autumn the truth isn't in you and you shall surely be damned."
"There is not the least doubt of your being damned," remarked Cameron.
"You mistake the sex—I don't wear hosiery. I wear socks."
"I'm not so sure!" Cameron retorted.
"That could be taken as a reflection on me, but you naturally referred to the ladies. 'Twas a most ungallant speech, monsieur, a most ungallant speech! Remember it not against him, mademoiselles—he knows not what he does."
"What a clown Dev can be when he tries!" smiled Pendleton. "His facial expressions make funny what otherwise would be rotten."
"And it is so absurd in him, who is such a wonder in business," Stephanie added. "The man has a double nature, surely—and I can't say that I care for this side. It doesn't fit!"
"On the contrary, it seems to me it fits admirably. He is able to throw off his cares and forget them—and to make a boy of himself. That may be the reason he is so shrewd—he comes at business fresh every morning. I think it was a pretense at first, but it has become second nature now."
"I like a manly man, not a combination of a man and a harlequin," said Stephanie. "A man like Mr. Chamberlain or—you, Montague," with a tantalizing smile from under her lowered lids.
"Don't tempt me!" he warned.—"Don't tempt me!"