“Yes,” said Elsie quietly.
“Then I know he made love to you.”
“Why?”
“You’re so pretty. He couldn’t help it.”
“Does he make love to every pretty girl?”
“Always. It’s his religion. But he does it so beautifully you can’t help believing it, until you compare notes with the other girls.”
“Did he make love to you?”
“He broke my heart when he ran away. I cried a whole week. But I got over it. He seemed so big and grown when he came home this last time. I was afraid to let him kiss me.”
“Did he dare to try?”
“No, and it hurt my feelings. You see, I’m not quite old enough to be serious with the big boys, and he looked so brave and handsome with that ugly scar on the edge of his forehead, and everybody was so proud of him. I was just dying to kiss him, and I thought it downright mean in him not to offer it.”