"The fool! To ride!" thought Dannie.
"Noo he will chill to the bone!".
Dannie cut across the fields to the lane and gathered up his load.

With the knowledge that Jimmy had started for town came the thought of Mary.
What was he going to say to her?
He would have to make a clean breast of it, and he did not like the showing.

In fact, he simply could not make a clean breast of it.

Tell her?
He could not tell her.

He would lie to her once more, this one time for himself.