Arrow Lake ungesagt

each of them had struck the hard boundary of one another, clacked along it, withdrew. every woman he knew had such a jagged swathe of mountain range inside their heart. he supposed their firmness was what drew his attention.
"oh, i vould never seek to influence you, sarah," mahler rejoined dryly, moving away from the barren fields of the former subject.
"but," the general went on, "perhaps i vould ask you very directly, if you vould like to be part of my grand design."
"and if you said no, i vould take it as a gentleman, and speak no more of it," mahler went on, a little smile gracing his lips. "this is all assuming i vould vant to ask you, or that you vould be interested. all hypothetical," he added with a roguish sarcasm.