It was
the only fault I could imagine you to have, and it seems too bad that
you should have none at all."
"You don't know anything about it," said Dolly, with a lovely expression
in her face of candour, penitence, and pleasantry combined; "I am not
only full of faults, but entirely made up of them. I am told of them too
often not to know."
"By miserably jealous and false people." It was impossible to look at
her and not think that. "By people who cannot have a single atom of
perception, or judgment, or even proper feeling. I should like to
hear one of them, if you would even condescend to mention it. Tell
me one--only one--if you can think of it. I am not at all a judge of
character, but--but I have often had to study it a good deal among the
boys."
This made Miss Dolly laugh, and drop her eyes, and smoothe her dress, as
if to be sure that his penetration had not been brought to bear on her.
And the gentle Scuddy blushed at his clumsiness, and hoped that she
would understand the difference.
"You do say such things!" She also was blushing beautifully as she
spoke, and took a long time before she looked at him again. "Things that
nobody else ever says. And that is one reason why I like you so."
"Oh, do you like me--do you like me in earnest? I can hardly dare to
dream even for one moment--"
"I am not going to talk about that any more. I like Mr. Twemlow, I like
Captain Stubbard, I like old Tugwell--though I should have liked him
better if he had not been so abominably cruel to his son.
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