“Ah! my eyes—yes, my eyes....” Inwardly I added, “Damn my eyes!” Then, after a pause in which I was conscious of her wide, bright, expectant regard I repeated lamely, “Ye—es, my eyes.”
But she was evidently waiting for me to rise to the occasion. She leaned still further forward; then suddenly she laid her hands on mine.
“You mustn’t kiss me,” she said.
“Oh, no, I mustn’t,” I agreed hastily. I hadn’t the slightest intention of doing it.
“No, no, that would ruin us. We must control ourselves. If Charley were to discover our secret he would kill me. Oh, I’ve known for long, so long that you loved me; but you were too fine, too honourable to show it. Now, what are we going to do? The situation is full of danger.”
“Do!” I said glumly, “I don’t know. It’s beastly awkward.” Then with an effort I cheered up. I tried to look at her with sad, stern eyes. I let my voice go down an octave.
“There’s only one thing to do, Nora—I mean, Cora, only one thing: I—must—go—away.”
“No, no, not that,” she cried.
“Yes, yes, I must; I must put the world between us. We must never meet again.”
I could feel fresh courage in my heart, also the steerage ticket in my pocket. In a near-by mirror I had a glimpse of my face, and was pleased to see how it was stern and set. I was pleased to see also that she was looking at me as if I were a hero.