Volume IV Part 38 (2/2)
”Then don't play”
”People would say I was afraid, or that all one”
”I hope at all events that you in soood luck Come and see me to-morroith the duke”
The duke came in at that moment, and asked me if I had liked the opera
Leonilda answered forabout love all the tie”
”You have done well”
”I trust you will bring M Casanova to seeme news that he has won”
”It's , dearest, but whether he wins or loses you shall see hiive us sohted”
We kissed her hand, and went to the sa for the duke There were twelve members of the club, and they all held the bank in turn They said that this hed at this opinion, as there is nothing more difficult to establish than equality between players
The Duke de Matalone sat down, drew out his purse and his pocket-book, and put two thousand ducats in the bank, begging pardon of the others for doubling the usual suer The bank never exceeded a thousand ducats
”Then,” said I, ”I will hazard two thousand ducats also and not more, for they say at Venice that a prudent player never risks more than he can win Each of , I took ten notes of a hundred ducats each fro's banker who had won theh I was prudent, and only risked le card, in less than three hours h I had still twenty-five thousand ducats; but I had said that I would not risk o back fro aiety was heightened by art on such occasions, and seereat advantage to be able to lose pleasantly
I h spirits furnishedconversation that all the table was in a roar I even succeeded in dissipating the melancholy of the Duke de Matalone, as in despair at having won such a suuest He was afraid he had half ruined ht say he had only welcomed me for the sake of my money
As we returned to the palace the conversation was affectionate on his side and jovial on uessed as the matter He wanted to say that I could pay theot in he wrote me a friendly note to the effect that if I wanted money his banker would let me have as enerosity of his offer, and if I was in need of funds I would availI went to his rooet that ere going to breakfast with his fair reat coats and went to Leonilda's pretty house
We found her sitting up in bed, negligently but decently dressed, with a dimity corset tied with red ribbons She looked beautiful, and her graceful posture added to her char Crebillon's Sopha
The duke sat down at the botto at her in speechless ad to recall to my memory where I had seen such another face as hers It seemed to me that I had loved a woman like her This was the first tilitter of candles She laughed at my absent-mindedness, and told me to sit down on a chair by her bedside
The duke told her that I was quite pleased at having lost two thousand ducats to his bank, as the loss made me sure she loved me
”Caro mio Don Giacomo, I am sorry to hear that! You would have done better not to play, for I should have loved you all the same, and you would have been two thousand ducats better off”
”And I two thousand ducats worse off,” said the duke, laughing
”Never rant me some favour to-day If you do not do so, I shall lose heart, and you will ”
”Think, Leonilda, what you can do for ”
The duke told her to dress, that we an at once, and preserved a just mean in what she let us see and what she concealed, and thus set h I was already captivated by her face, her wit, and her charlance towards her beautiful breast, and thus added fuel to the fire I confess that I only obtained this satisfaction by a species of larceny, but I could not have succeeded if she had not been well disposed towardsshe irl will be much more chary of her favours towards a man she loves than towards a man she does not love, because she would be afraid to lose the first, whereas she does not care about the second
”It will not be so withLeonilda,” said I