"Eleanor," he said, "do not think that I expect too much from you now.
But I love you very dearly, and to-day I ask from you only the right to give you my name, so that I may protect you from all evil, whensoever it may come. For the rest I am content to wait."
The hot color burned in her cheeks. She looked at him confused--reproachful.
"But you never seemed as though you cared at all!" she faltered. "I don"t understand."
He caught her to him. His eyes were bright, his face hungry with the love of her.
"Dear!" he cried, "look at me. What does it matter when first I cared for you? Look at me now--listen. I love you, Eleanor! You believe me!
You must!"
She laughed as she leaned toward him.
"It is so easy," she murmured, "to believe when one wants to--very much."