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how she pressed him or how carefully she timed her pleadingnot even when he was nearly in the throes of his culminationwould he say outright that he loved her or imply in any way that he would be willing toor even wished toabandon the proposed contract with Sybelle. |
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She was utterly and absolutely furious. Never had she endured so long and devious a coupling. Did the man think she had nothing else to do than be mauled about? Was no part of her body to be private to herself, but his plaything? And after all her patience and compliance to his whims, all he had to say was that she had done no great harm. He confessed he was at fault. How generous! No doubt he felt that to be so great a concession as to repay her for everything. Marie knew that if she did not get rid of Walter immediately, she would say something that might make it impossible to carry out her plan to marry him. |
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Now she pushed him away gently, exerting all her will-power to resist the temptation to shove him right out of the bed. "So you say," she muttered, her voice shaking with her effort not to scream at him, "but others will not be so generous. It is always the woman who is blamed and shamed. I beg you, go now." |
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It was exactly what Walter most desired to do, and his eagerness made him feel even guiltier. Her words seemed to confirm the conclusions he had drawn about the cause of her behavior. He drew her close again and kissed her gently on the forehead. |
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"There is nothing to fear," he soothed. "I am certain none saw us enter here, and I will swear on my honor, on the souls of my mother and father, if you will, that none will ever hear of this from me." |
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Since this was exactly the opposite of what Marie wanted, Walter's attempt to pacify her was, to say the least, ineffectual. Marie had hoped that they would be noticed entering her chamber together, and she had assumed that Walter would be unable to resist boasting of his conquest. She had counted on those boasts to back her claims that he had seduced her. Marie was not one to believe overmuch in honor, but she could not mistake the sincerity of Walter's promise not to betray her and no man, no matter how light-minded, swore on the souls of the dead close in blood to him. |
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Moreover, Marie's cry that it was the woman who would |
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