Part 19 (2/2)
”Is it not painful to continue the discussion?” ed e it Must I repeat that the affair of the paper is finished?”
”We shall see,” said Mademoiselle
”As Mademoiselle wishes,” said my father
”It has been six years since I first saw you in Paris,” said Mademoiselle Her voice was softlyMy father placed his wine glass on the table, and seeave her his full attention
”Six years,” said Madeht of you since then
”You have done me too much honor,” said my father ”You always have, my lady”
She only smiled and shook her head
”You are the sort of man omen think about, and the sort o you A man with a past is always ht when I saw you that evening? You re and planning, and you were to have a boat off the coast of Normandy You and the Marquis had ridden froht, Captain, that you were the sort ofPerhaps you know the Marquis thought so too, and even today I believe ere nearly right We saw you in Brussels later, and in Holland, and then at Blanzy this year I have known of a dozen cole blunder
Indeed, I know of only one thing in which you have definitely failed”
”Only one? Impossible,” said h”
A touch of color had mounted to her cheeks, and she looked down at the bare table
”You have done your best, done your best in a hundred little ways to make me hate you You have studied theYou have o, about the Marquis--and yet you have not succeeded”
My father raised his hand hastily to his coat lapel
”Is there never a woman ill not reduce matters to personalities,” he murmured ”I should have known better I see it now I should have rave, there was laughter in her eyes
”I have often wondered why you did not It was the only method you seem to have overlooked”
”There is one lanced at us both, and then back at his wine again ”He forgets they are all alike Sooner or later he sees one that in soht you were different, Madeht you even rational Surely you have every reason to dislike me
Let us be serious, Mademoiselle You do not hate me?”
”I am afraid,” said Mademoiselle, ”that you have had quite an opposite effect”
In spite of myself I started Could it be that I was jealous? Her eyes were lowered to the ar of the ht have suspected it before, but was it possible that I cared?
”Good God!” exclaimed my father, and pushed back his chair
Mademoiselle rested her chin on the palm of her hand
”I told you the intervieould not be pleasant,” she said ”But you are pessimistic, captain I have not said I loved you Do not be alar to say I pitied you That was all”
”Mon Dieu,” ht I detected a note of relief in his voice ”Surely I am not as old as that”