Part 34 (1/2)
”I assure you, ham; I was charmed with him”
”It was not you?” said Madame; ”ah! so much the better;” and she emphasized the ”so much the better,” as if she had instead said, ”so much the worse”
A few minutes' silence ensued She then resu left-I nohy and by whose ht I should have recovered my tranquillity; but not at all, for all at once Monsieur found another pretext; all at once-”
”All at once,” said the king, playfully, ”some one else presents himself It is but natural; you are beautiful, and will always meet with men ill madly love you”
”In that case,” exclaimed the princess, ”I will create a solitude aroundprepared for me But no, I prefer to return to London There I a they raceful suspicion, and unworthy a gentle in my estimation, since he has shown me he can be a tyrant to a woman”
”Nay, nay,you”
”Love”Monsieur will never love any woman,” she said; ”Monsieur loves himself too much; no, unhappily for me, Monsieur's jealousy is of the worst kind-he is jealous without love”
”Confess, however,” said the king, who began to be excited by this varied and animated conversation; ”confess that Guiche loves you”
”Ah! sire, I know nothing about that”
”You must have perceived it A man who loves readily betrays himself”
”M de Guiche has not betrayed hi M de Guiche”
”I, indeed! Ah, sire, I only needed a suspicion from yourself to crown , hurriedly; ”do not distress yourself Nay, you are weeping I implore you to cale tears fell upon her hands; the king took one of her hands in his, and kissed the tears away She looked at him so sadly and with so aze
”You have no kind of feeling, then, for Guiche?” he said, more disturbed than became his character of mediator
”None-absolutely none”
”Then I can reassurewill satisfy him, sire Do not believe he is jealous Monsieur has been badly advised by some one, and he is of nervous disposition”
”He
Mada did so likewise, still holding her hand all the while Their ently withdrew her hand, and from that moment, she felt her triumph was certain, and that the field of battle was her own
”Monsieur co, ”that you prefer the society of private individuals to his own conversation and society”
”But Monsieur passes his life in looking at his face in the glass, and in plotting all sorts of spiteful things against wo somewhat too far”
”I only tell you what is true Do you observe for yourself, sire, and you will see that I aht”
”I will observe; but, in the ive my brother?”
”My departure”
”You repeat that word,” exclai the last ten e had been produced that Madahly changed
”Sire, I cannot be happy here any longer,” she said ”M de Guiche annoys Monsieur Will he be sent away, too?”
”If it be necessary, why not?” replied the king, s
”Well; and after M de Guiche-whoret-I warn you, sire”
”Ah, you will regret hireat friendshi+p for me, and he amuses , slightly annoyed, ”do you knoould not undertake to ain between you; nay, I would not even attempt it”
”Sire, can you, even now, prevent Monsieur fro jealous of the first person who may approach? I know very well that M de Guiche is not the first”
”Again I warn you that as a good brother I shall take a dislike to De Guiche”
”Ah, sire, do not, I entreat you, adopt either the sy; better for yourself and for every one else”
”You jest charly, madame; and I can well understand how the people you attack must adore you”
”And is that the reason why you, sire, whoarded as my defender, are about to join these who persecute me?” said Madame
”I your persecutor! Heaven forbid!”
”Then,” she continued, languishi+ngly, ”grant me a favor”
”Whatever you wish”
”Let land”
”Never, never!” exclaimed Louis XIV
”I am a prisoner, then?”
”In France-if France is a prison-yes”
”Whatyourself to friendshi+ps which are so us by your retirement, remain always in our society, do not leave us, let us live as a united family M de Guiche is certainly very amiable; but if, at least, we do not possess his wit-”