man. Meantime, she had put her two little hands behind her back in the
simulated attitude of "a good girl," and was saying half smilingly, and
he even thought half wistfully:--

"Are yo' satisfied?"

"Perfectly."

"Then let's go away. It's mighty hot here."

They turned away, and descending the slope again re-entered the thicker
shade of the main avenue. Here they seemed to have left the sterner
aspect of Death. They walked slowly; the air was heavy with the hot
incense of flowers; the road sinking a little left a grassy bank on one
side. Here Miss Sally halted and listlessly seated herself, motioning
Courtland to do the same. He obeyed eagerly. The incident of the wreath
had troubled him, albeit with contending sensations. She had given it to
please HIM; why should HE question the manner, or torment himself with
any retrospective thought? He would have given worlds to have been able
to accept it lightly or gallantly,--with any other girl he could; but
he knew he was trembling on the verge of a passionate declaration; the
magnitude of the stake was too great to be imperiled by a levity
of which she was more a mistress than himself, and he knew that his
sentiment had failed to impress her. His pride kept him from appealing
to her strangely practical nature, although he had recognized and
accepted it, and had even begun to believe it an essential part of the
strong fascination she had over him. But being neither a coward nor a
weak, hesitating idealist, when he deliberately took his seat beside
her he as deliberately made up his mind to accept his fate, whatever it
might be, then and there.