he could transform the barest incident into a thing of curve and contour.

I guess I'm the Black Death,' he said slowly. 'I don't seem to bring people happiness any more.

To most women art is a form of scandal.

Men get to be a mixture of the charming mannerisms of the women they have known.

Don't be so anxious about it,' she laughed. 'I'm not used to being loved. I wouldn't know what to do; I never got the trick of it.' She looked down at him, shy and fatigued. 'So here we are. I told you years ago that I had the makings of Cinderella.' He took her hand; she drew it back instinctively and then replaced it in his. 'Beg your pardon. Not even used to being touched. But I'm not afraid of you, if you stay quiet and don't move suddenly.

Trouble has no necessary connection with discouragement. Discouragement has a germ of its own, as different from trouble as arthritis is different from a stiff joint.

Actually that’s my secret — I can’t even talk about you to anybody because I don’t want any more people to know how wonderful you are.