It was impossible;
she was not well. If he loved her at all he would not insist!
Nevertheless, he was obstinate; he refused to go away, and she was
beginning to give in when she met Satin's eyes once more. Then she grew
inflexible. No, the thing was out of the question! The count, deeply
moved and with a look of suffering, had risen and was going in quest of
his hat. But in the doorway he remembered the set of sapphires; he
could feel the case in his pocket. He had been wanting to hide it at the
bottom of the bed so that when she entered it before him she should feel
it against her legs. Since dinnertime he had been meditating this little
surprise like a schoolboy, and now, in trouble and anguish of heart at
being thus dismissed, he gave her the case without further ceremony.
"What is it?" she queried. "Sapphires? Dear me! Oh yes, it's that set.
How sweet you are! But I say, my darling, d'you believe it's the same
one? In the shopwindow it made a much greater show."
That was all the thanks he got, and she let him go away. He noticed
Satin stretched out silent and expectant, and with that he gazed at
both women and without further insistence submitted to his fate and
went downstairs.
Pages:
531
532
533
534
535
536
537
538
539
540
541
542
543
544
545
546
547
548
549
550
551
552
553
554
555