He had shown no sign of grievance or reproach; he seemed quite prepared for her reaction from the moment of only dubious hope, and, though quite without humility, to find it natural, however painful to himself, that Althea should be rather bored after so much of him.

But the gentle lighting of his face now showed her, too, that her reticence and withdrawal had hurt more than the new loss of hope.
'You mean,' he said, trying to smile a little as he said it, 'you mean that you've found out that you can't, dear ?' She stood, stricken by the words and their finality, and she slowly nodded, while two large tears rolled down her cheeks.
Franklin Kane controlled the signs of his own emotion, which was deep.
'That's all right, dear,' he said.

'You're not guilty of anything.
You've been a little too kind--more than you can keep up, I mean.

It's been beautiful of you to be kind at all and to think you might be kinder.

Would you rather I went away?
Perhaps it's painful to have me about just now.