Loveness herself was not immune to the beguiling magnetism of a Spokes Moloi in BSAP uniform. When she had first seen him step out of the Idlazonke General Goods and Bottle Store, she had sincerely felt that the man who had been the cause of her father taking his own life had absolutely no right to look so incredibly dashing. And what business did he have growing a moustache that only served to make his finer features more handsome? Yes, he was a man who could recite lines of literature, but for six long years, Loveness had done a commendable job of hating him with all her heart, and she definitely intended to continue doing so – even if Constable Spokes Moloi was the only man in the entire world who looked attractive in a shako helmet.

But … her wise father had said that Spokes Moloi was a brave, integrous and intelligent man, and Loveness came to see these qualities and more on constant display as he worked on the Daisy case. Since he was now always in the village, she could not very well ignore him. That was not how she had been raised.

And so sometimes when he greeted her, she stopped whatever she was doing and entered into a short conversation with him; if he found her making her way back from Raftopoulos’s caravan and wanted to walk her part of the way home, she saw nothing wrong with letting him do as he pleased; and if, whenever he found Dikeledi – who was captivated by the brass buttons on his uniform – in her presence, he chose to speak of marriage and children, what else could she (who had ascertained, as soon as he had stepped out of the Idlazonke General Goods and Bottle Store, not only that his collar could use more starch, but also that his finger could use a wedding band) do but listen to him?

And so it was quite understandable that after it had taken him an eternity (a full two months one week and five days, to be exact) to ask her to marry him, she felt that it would be very impolite of her, after taking up so much of his time, not to promptly accept his offer. She could and would not toy with his affections or disappoint his hopes. That was not how she had been raised.