Fleur stiffened, realizing that Alain was suffering from acute embarrassment. "When i proposed marriage," he said, "I believed you were a middle aged spinster stuck in the middle of nowhere, at the beck and call of your father, and with no hope of ever escaping that rut. " "No one thought to mention that you were a young and lovely girl who probably could have had the choice of half a dozen men. i simply dont understand why you agreed to my proposal- tying yourself to a blind man! " Fleurs heart beat madly. He must never know the foolish dreams she had woven around him!