Her eyes, for some reason, were fixed upon her wedding ring.

Swift to notice even her slightest action, he frowned as he discerned the direction of her gaze.
"Violet," he said, "I think that you are right.

I think that the time has come when I must tell you what is in my mind." She raised her eyebrows slightly at the sound of her Christian name.

He moved over and stood by her chair.
"For a good many years," he began slowly, "I have been a man with a purpose.

When it first came into my mind--not willingly--its accomplishment seemed utterly hopeless.