"I do not know just how I love you, my dear, but I should always have turned to you if I had been in trouble."
"Have you never been in love?"
"No, I have been and am deeply touched by Jean Perliez's devotion, but
I have never thought of the possibility of being happy with him."
"And the other?" asked Albert, looking straight at her with his clear eyes.
She did not answer at once.
"The Duke?"
"Yes, the Duke."
"I do not love him," she answered frightened. "At moments I even hate him, and…."
"And?" insisted the young man, pressing the hand he was still holding.
"… I am happy to be your fiancée!!!"