The Princess Passes Volume 56, Alice Muriel Williamson, Charles Norris Williamson [primary phonics txt] 📗

Atmosphere Grew No Warmer

For The Introduction Hastily Effected By Gaetà. To Be Sure, The Boy

Bowed, I Bowed, And Paolo Bowed The Lowest Of The Trio, So That We Saw

The Parting In His Hair; But Three Honest Snorts Of Defiance Would

Have Been No More Unfriendly Than Our Courtesies.

 

Not A Doubt That Gaetà Felt The Electricity In The Air, With The

Instinct Of A Woman; But With The Instinct Of A Born Flirt, She

Thrilled With It. Her Colour Rose; Her Warm Eyes Sparkled. She Was

Perfectly Happy; For--From Her Point Of View--Were There Not Here

Three Male Beings All Secretly Ready To Fly At One Another's Throat

Chapter 20 (The Great Paolo) Pg 150

For Love Of Her; And What Can A Spoiled Beauty Want More?

 

She Covered The Little Awkwardness With Charming Tact, For All Her

Childishness; And Then The Excuses I Made For My Defection Caused A

Diversion. She Was So Sorry; It Was Really Too Bad. I Was Going To

Desert Her For Other Friends. Were Not We Friends, Nice New Friends,

So Much More Interesting Than Old Friends, Whom You Knew Inside-Out,

Like Your Frocks Or Your Gloves? But Surely, I Would Come Often, Very

Often To The Villa--Always For _Déjeuner_ And _Dîner_, Till The Other

Friends Arrived, Was It Not? And I Would Not Try To Take Signor Boy

(This Was The Name She Had Built On Mine For Him) Away From Her And

The Dear Baronessa?

 

I Reassured Her On This Last Point, Promised Everything She Asked, And

Then Got Away As Quickly As I Could, Lest I Should Disgrace Myself By

Letting Escape The Wild Laughter Which I Caged With Difficulty. It Was

Arranged That We Should All Meet That Evening, After Dinner, At The

Villa Des Fleurs, For One Of Those _Fêtes De Nuit_ Which Gaetà Loved;

And Then I Turned My Back Upon The Group Under The Red Umbrella,

Without A Glance For The Boy.

 

I Tramped Into The Town Once More, With Joseph Close Behind, Leading

His Own Finois And Innocentina's Fanny, And Found My Way To The Hotel,

In Its Large Shady Garden, Where Coloured Lamps Were Already Beginning

To Glow In The Twilight. Soon I Had All The Resources Of Civilisation

At My Command: A White-And-Gold Panelled Suite, With A Bath As Big As

A Boudoir, And Hot Water Enough To Make Of Me A Better Man (I Hoped)

Than Paolo Di Nivoli.

 

Later I Dined On The Wide Balcony, With Flower-Fragrance Blowing

Towards Me From The Mysterious Blue Dusk Of The Garden. I Ought, I

Said To Myself, To Be Well-Contented, For The Dinner Was Excellent,

And The Surroundings A Picture In Aquarelles. Still, I Had A Vague

Sense Of Something Very Wrong, Such As A Well Brought Up Motor Car

Must Feel When It Has A Screw Loose, And Can't Explain To The

Chauffeur. What Was It? The Boy's Absence? Nonsense; He Didn't Want

Me, Rather The Contrary. Why Should I Want Him? A Few Weeks Ago I Had

Not Known That He Existed. I Drank A Pint Of Dry Champagne, Iced

Almost To Freezing Point; But Instead Of Hardening My Heart Against

The Ex-Brat, To My Annoyance The Sparkling Liquid Gradually But Surely

Produced The Opposite Effect.

 

The Fragrance Of The Flowers, The Soft Wind Among The Chestnut Trees

In The Garden, The Beauty Of The Night, All Reproached Me For My

Conduct To The Young Creature I Had Abandoned. What Use Was It To

Remind Myself That I Had Merely Taken A Leaf Out Of His Book, That I

Had Even Played Into His Hands, As He Seemed To Desire? The Answer

Would Come That He Was A Boy, And I A Man. No Matter What He Had Done,

I Ought Not To Have Left Him To Flirt With Gaetà Under The Jealous

Eyes Of The Italian, Who Was "A Whirlwind, And Caught A Woman Off Her

Feet."

 

It Was Too Late Now To Think Of This, For I Had Refused Gaetà's

Chapter 20 (The Great Paolo) Pg 151

Invitation To Visit At Her House, And Having Done So I Could Not Ask

For Another, Even If I Would. Probably The Boy Would Know Well Enough

How Far To Go, And To Protect Himself From Consequences When He Had

Reached The Limit.

 

Chapter 21 (The Challenge) Pg 152

     "'Do I Indeed Lack Courage?' Inquired Mr. Archer Of Himself,

     'Courage, . . . That Does Not Fail A Weasel Or A Rat--

      That Is A Brutish Faculty?'"--R.L. Stevenson.

 

 

I Drank My Black Coffee And Smoked A Cigarette. Then, A Glance At My

Watch Told Me That It Was Time To Keep The Appointment At The Villa

Des Fleurs, Five Minutes' Walk From The Hotel. I Expected The

Contessa's Party To Be Late, But Somewhat To My Surprise They Had

Already Arrived, And A Quick Glance Showed Me That, Outwardly At

Least, The Relations Of All Were Still Amicable.

 

"Signor Boy Did Not Wish To Come," Said The Contessa To Me, "But I

Made Him. He Says That He Does Not Like Crowds. Look At Him Now; He

Has Wandered Far From Us Already, Probably To Find Some Dark Corner

Where He Can Forget That There Are Too Many People. But Then, It Was

Sweet Of Him To Come At All, Since It Was Only To Please Me."

 

It Was True. The Boy Had Slipped Away From The Seats We Had Taken Near

The Music. He Had Gone To Avoid Me, Perhaps, I Said To Myself

Bitterly. I Need Not Have Spoiled My Dinner With Anxiety For His

Welfare; He Seemed To Be Taking Very Good Care Of Himself.

 

"I Was Horribly Worried At Dinner," Whispered Gaetà To Me, The Light

Of The Fireworks Playing Rosily Over Her Face. "Those Two--You Know

Of Whom I Speak--Weren't A Bit Nice To Each Other. It Was Paolo Who

Began It, Of Course, Saying Little, Hateful Things That Sounded

Smooth, But Had A Second Meaning; And Signor Boy Is Not Stupid. He Did

Not Miss The Bad Intention, Oh, Not He, And He Said Other Little

Things Back Again, Much Sharper And Wittier Than Paolo, Who Was

Furious, And Gnawed His Lip. It Was Most Exciting."

 

"Did You Try To Pour Oil On The Troubled Waters?" I Asked.

 

"I Was Very Pleasant To Them Both, If That Is What You Mean, First To

One And Then To The Other. After Dinner, I Gave Signor Boy A Rose, And

Paolo A Gardenia."

 

"How Charming Of You," I Commented Drily. "If That Didn't Smooth

Chapter 21 (The Challenge) Pg 153

Matters, What Could?"

 

The Aëronaut Was Sitting On Gaetà's Left, I On Her Right, With The

Baronessa Next Me On The Other Side, And Both Were Straining Every

Nerve To Hear Our Confidences, Though Pretending To Be Lost In

Admiration Of The _Feu D'artifice_.

 

When The Contessa Laughed Softly, Her Little Dark Head Not Far From My

Ear, The Italian Sprang Up, And Walked Away, Unable To Endure Five

Minutes Of Gaetà's Neglect. She And I Continued Our Conversation,

Though Our Eyes Wandered, Mine In Search Of The Boy, Hers I Fancy In

Quest Of The Same Object.

 

Soon I Caught Sight Of The Slim, Youthful Figure, In Its Rather

Fantastic Evening Dress, The Becoming Dinner-Jacket, The Eton Collar,

The Loosely Tied Bow At The Throat, And The Full, Black Knickerbocker

Trousers, Like Those Worn In The Days Of Henri Quatre. As I Watched It

Moving Through The Crowd, And Finally Subsiding In A Seat Under An

Isolated Tree, I Saw The Boyish Form Joined By A Tall And Manly One.

Paolo Di Nivoli Had Followed His Young Rival, And Presently Came To A

Stand Close To The Boy's Chair. He Folded His Arms, And Looked Down

Into The Eyes Which Were Upturned In Answer To Some Word.

 

We Could Not See The Expression Of The Two Faces. We Saw Only That The

Man And The Boy Were Talking, Spasmodically At First, Then

Continuously.

 

"I Do Hope They're Not Quarrelling," Said Gaetà, In The Seventh Heaven

Of Delight.

 

"Of Course Not," I Replied, Annoyed At Her Frivolity. "They Are Too

Sensible."

 

"Let Us Make Some Excuse, And Go Over To Them," She Pleaded. "I Am

Tired Of Sitting Still."

 

There Was Nothing For It But To Obey Her Whim. I Took Her Across The

Grassy Space Which Divided Us From The Two Under The Tree, And She

Began To Chatter About The Fireworks. What Did Signor Boy Think Of

Them? Was Not Aix A Charming Place?

 

But Abruptly, In The Midst Of Her Babble, Paolo Di Nivoli Swept Her

Away From The Boy And Me, In His Best "Whirlwind" Manner, Which

Doubtless Thrilled Her With Mingled Terror And Delight.

 

"Nice Night, Isn't It?" I Remarked Brilliantly.

 

"Yes," Said The Boy.

 

"Did The Contessa Give You A Good Dinner?"

 

"No--Yes--That Is, I Didn't Notice."

Chapter 21 (The Challenge) Pg 154

"Perhaps That Was Natural."

 

The Boy Did Not Answer, But I Heard Him Swallow Hard. He