"No"—she considered—"keep that for liking to dislike."
"Do you wish to provoke me then," Osmond laughed, "to a passion for him?"
She said nothing for a moment, but then met the light question with a disproportionate gravity. "No,Mr. Osmond; I don't think I should ever dare to provoke you. Lord Warburton, at any rate," she more easily added, "is a very nice man."
"Of great ability?" her friend enquired.
