Cromwell Biron passed her in the hollow under the bare boughs of the maple that were outlined against the silvery moonlit sky . When Cecily went into the house , Lucy Ellen opened the parlor door . She was very pale , but her eyes burned in her face and her hands were clasped before her . `` I wish you 'd come in here for a few minutes , Cecily , '' she said feverishly . Cecily followed silently into the room . `` Cecily , '' she said faintly , `` Cromwell was here to-night . He asked me to marry him . I told him to come to-morrow night for his answer . '' She paused and looked imploringly at Cecily . Cecily did not speak . She stood tall and unrelenting by the table . The rigidity of her face and figure smote Lucy Ellen like a blow . She threw out her bleached little hands and spoke with a sudden passion utterly foreign to her . `` Cecily , I want to marry him . I -- I -- love him . I always have . I never thought of this when I promised . Oh , Cecily , you 'll let me off my promise , wo n't you ? '' `` No , '' said Cecily . It was all she said .
Lucy Ellen 's hands fell XXXXX her sides , and the light went out of her face .
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