“Ha! ha! How did it end?”
“Oh, we agreed to disagree. I respect Captain Dean for his fight; but Father will win, of course. He always does.”
“He won't win this time, Miss Colton.”
“Why not? Oh, I actually forgot I was talking to the head and front of the opposition. So you think he will not win, Mr. Paine?”
“I am sure of it. He cannot close that Lane until I sell it, and I shall not sell.”
She regarded me thoughtfully, her chin upon her hand.
“It would be odd if he should not, after all,” she said. “He prides himself on having his own way. It would be strange if he should be beaten down here, after winning so often in New York. Your mother told me something of your feeling in the matter, Mr. Paine. Father has offered you a good price for the land, hasn't he?”
“He has offered me a dozen times what it is worth.”
“Yes. He does not count money when he has set his heart upon anything. And you refused?”
“Yes.”