“Well, now, to come to the point—” he began again.
But she interrupted him by glancing at the watch on her gown, and rising.
“What's the matter?” he asked, with some annoyance.
“The fifteen minutes are up,” she announced. “I cannot take the responsibility of detaining you.”
“We will put in tantalizing as another attractive quality,” he laughed. “I absolve you of all responsibility. Sit down.”
“I believe you mentioned obedience,” she answered, and sat down again at the end of the bench, resting her chin on her gloved hand, and looking at him. By this time her glances seemed to have gained a visibly disturbing effect. He moved a little nearer to her, took off his hat (which he had hitherto neglected to do), and thrust his hands abruptly into his pockets—as much as to say that he would not be responsible for their movements if they were less free.
“Hang it all, Victoria,” he exclaimed, “I'm a practical man, and I try to look at this, which is one of the serious things in life, in a practical way.”
“One of the serious things,” she repeated, as though to herself.
“Yes,” he said, “certainly.”
“I merely asked to be sure of the weight you gave it. Go on.”