Henry shook his head, 'I was drunk,' he said, trying to sound both ashamed and firm in this belief. He remembered the rosebush incident very clearly, of course, but he knew that sneaking into the bedroom window of his fiancee's little sister wasn't something he wanted to explain to his father. Sometimes, Henry reflected, being taken for a perpetual drunk was sort of convenient.

She was trying to sound tough and impatient, but she knew that vulnerable desire to be wooed was still brimming in her tone.

A lady must retain always her composure. Even in a rainstorm, she must appear joyous and dry. When she loses her composure, then the respect of her peers and her staff will follow in short order.

Oh yes, well, I find myself unconventional everywhere.

Don't go looking for boys in the dark They will say pretty things then leave you with scars. Do go looking for boys in the park For that is where the true gentlemen are.

They will stop calling brides beautiful after today—you have simply set the standard too high,' he said.

She had rarely been near Henry since then, and the sight of him now was like a concentrated dose.