"Don't you understand, man?
I love her.

I didn't mean what I said.

I would kill for her, too, Jean.

I said that to find out--what you would do--" Slowly Croisset relaxed, a faint smile curling his thin lips.
"If it was a joke, M'seur, it was a bad one." "It wasn't a joke," cried Howland.

"It was a serious effort to make you tell me something about Meleese.