I think so now."
"That's rather clever of you. Because, you see, if you thought so then
that shows--"
"What does it show?"
"Why, that you knew all the time--and that you were thinking of me.
You _did_ know. You _did_ think--"
"No. No. It's only that I've got to--that you're _making_ me think of
you now. But I'm not thinking of you the way you want."
"If you're not--if you haven't thought of me--_the way I want_--then I
can't make you out. You're beyond me."
They sat down, tired out with the struggle, as if they had reached the
same point of exhaustion at the same instant.
"Why not leave it at that?" she said.
He rallied.
"Because I can't leave it at that. You knew I cared. You must have
seen. I could have sworn you saw. I could have sworn--"
She knew what he was going to swear and she stopped him.
"I _did_ see that you thought you cared for me. If you'd been quite
sure you'd have told me. You wouldn't have waited. You're not quite
sure now. You're only telling me now because I'm going away. If I
hadn't said I was going away you'd never have told me. You'd just have
gone on waiting till you were quite sure."
She had irritated him now beyond endurance.
"Gwenda," he said savagely, "you're enough to drive a man mad."
"You've told me _that_ before, anyhow. Don't you see that I should go
on driving you mad? Don't you see how unhappy you'd be with me, how
impossible it all is?"
She laughed.
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