Then I told her I was going away.

"What makes you want to go away, Jim?
Haven't I been nice to you?"

"You've been just awfully good to me,
Lena," I blurted. "I don't think about much
else. I never shall think about much else
while I'm with you. I'll never settle down and
grind if I stay here. You know that." I
dropped down beside her and sat looking at
the floor. I seemed to have forgotten all my
reasonable explanations.

Lena drew close to me, and the little hesi-
tation in her voice that had hurt me was not
there when she spoke again.

"I oughtn't to have begun it, ought I?"
she murmured. "I oughtn't to have gone
to see you that first time. But I did want to.
I guess I've always been a little foolish about
you. I don't know what first put it into my
head, unless it was Antonia, always telling
me I mustn't be up to any of my nonsense
with you. I let you alone for a long while,
though, didn't I?"

She was a sweet creature to those she loved,
that Lena Lingard!

At last she sent me away with her soft,
slow, renunciatory kiss. "You aren't sorry

[[331]]

p330 _ -chap- _ toc-1 _ p331w _ toc-2 _ +chap+ _ p332

v?