She said, still looking down at his hand lying between her own:
"You have behaved in the sweetest way to me—" Her voice grew unsteady, and she turned her head sharply away.
"Jacqueline!" he exclaimed under his breath. "It's a broken reed you're trusting. Don't, dear. I'm like all the others."
She shook her head slightly, still looking away from him. After a short silence, her voice returned to her control again.
"You are very kind to me, Mr. Desboro. When a man sees that a girl likes him—and is kind to her—it is wonderful to her."
He tried to take a lighter tone.
"It's the case of the beast born in captivity, Jacqueline. I'm only going through the tricks convention has taught me. But every instinct remains unaltered."
"That is civilisation, isn't it?"
"Oh, I don't know what it is—you wonderful little thing!"