"I have certainly nothing to be afraid of, and to prove it to you I will
leave the door open."

I felt more than ever certain of victory, and resolved not to blow out
the candles, as my doing so might be interpreted into a confession of
fear. Besides, the light would render my triumph and her humiliation more
complete. With these thoughts I went to bed.

At eleven o'clock a slight noise told me that my hour had come. I saw
Leah enter my room in her chemise and a light petticoat. She locked my
door softly, and when I cried, "Well; what do you want with me?" she let
her chemise and petticoat drop, and lay down beside me in a state of
nature.

I was too much astonished to repulse her.

Leah was sure of victory, and without a word she threw herself upon me,
pressing her lips to mine, and depriving me of all my faculties except
one.

I utilised a short moment of reflection by concluding that I was a
presumptuous fool, and that Leah was a woman with a most extensive
knowledge of human nature.

In a second my caress became as ardent as hers, and after kissing her
spheres of rose and alabaster I penetrated to the sanctuary of love,
which, much to my astonishment, I found to be a virgin citadel.

There was a short silence, and then I said,--