As she proceeded, her courage returned to her, and seeing that he was much disturbed, she became quite composed.
She regretted extremely, she said, that she had not foreseen this.

It was all so unexpected to her that she was quite overwhelmed by it.

She felt that this was a lie, and she was not sure that he did not know it.
Of course, it was quite impossible that she could consent to anything like what he had proposed.
"Do you mean because she is from the North and I am from the South ?" he asked earnestly.
"No; of course not.

I have Southern blood myself.

My grandmother was from the South." She smiled at his simplicity.
"Then why ?" This was embarrassing, but she must answer.
"Why, you--we--move in--quite different--spheres, and--ah, it's really not to be thought of Mr.Keith," she said, half desperately.
He himself had thought of the different spheres in which they moved, but he had surmounted that difficulty.