The surroundings were not romantic, but somehow they got brighter and her gloom vanished.

Lister's eyes sparkled; he wore the stamp of strength and confidence.
"I doubted if my step-father would bring me, but I really meant to come," she said.

"For one thing, I wanted to ask you--" She hesitated, for it was hard to strike the right note.

She had begun to see there was something exciting and perhaps heroic about the adventure.

The handful of men had undertaken a big thing; there was much against them, and daunting risks must be run.