Sentence:  He used to drop into my chambers once in a while to smoke, and was first-rate company. When I gave a dinner there was generally a cover laid for him. I <WSD>liked</WSD> the man for his own sake, and even had he promised to turn out a celebrity it would have had no weight with me. 
Meaning of the word marked with <WSD> tags:  To derive pleasure "of", "by" or "with" someone or something.