“Beauty in distress,” began Roddy briskly, “is the one thing——”
“That’s what I mean,” interrupted the girl gratefully, “the way you take it, the way you make it easier for me. Every other man I know down here would tell me he was doing it only for me, and he would hope I would believe him. But when you say you are helping beauty in distress, you are secretly frightened lest I may not have a sense of humor—and believe you. I know you are doing this because you feel deeply for my father. If I didn’t know that, if I didn’t feel that that were true, all this I have asked of you would be impossible. But it is possible, because I know you first tried to save my father of your own accord. Because I know now that it is your nature to wish to help others. Because you are brave, and you are generous.”
But Roddy refused to be ennobled.
“It’s because I’m a White Mice,” he said. “My oath compels me! How would you like,” he demanded, frowning, “if we turned you into an Honorary White Mouse?”
For an instant, with perplexed eyes and levelled brows, the girl regarded him fixedly. Then she smiled upon him. It was the same flashing, blinding smile which the morning before had betrayed him into her hands, bound and captive. It was a smile that passed swiftly, like a flash of sunshine over a garden of gay flowers. It brought out unsuspected, ambushed dimples. It did fascinating and wholly indefensible things to her lips. It filled her eyes with gracious, beautiful meanings. Inez raised her head challengingly.
“You think,” she declared, “that I cannot be foolish, too. But I can. Let’s sit down here on this rock and be quite foolish.”
V
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