"Some people marry for love."
"Love I—no. I've loved but one woman."
"Me!"
They had both said more than they intended, and suddenly realised it. Though the self-betrayal meant most to Alice, she was the first to recover a steady voice.
"But that does not matter now," she said calmly.
He leaned suddenly forward and took her hand.
"Alice."
Her hand lay in his, a very small thing, and her head bent towards it. She did not want him to see her cheeks flush and her eyes fill at this his first caress.
"Alice—how did you know?"
"I'm not a fool."