ours,' I answered; 'command me.'

"'You are very nice,' she said, pressing my hand. 'Come and have dinner
with me, and I will tell you everything, as if you were my confessor.'

"So this discreet, suspicious woman, who had never been heard to speak a
word about her affairs to any one, was going to consult me.

"'Oh, how dear to me is this silence that you have imposed on me!' I
cried; 'but I would rather have had some sharper ordeal still.' And
she smiled upon the intoxication in my eyes; she did not reject my
admiration in any way; surely she loved me!

"Fortunately, my purse held just enough to satisfy her cab-man. The day
spent in her house, alone with her, was delicious; it was the first time
that I had seen her in this way. Hitherto we had always been kept apart
by the presence of others, and by her formal politeness and reserved
manners, even during her magnificent dinners; but now it was as if I
lived beneath her own roof--I had her all to myself, so to speak. My
wandering fancy broke down barriers, arranged the events of life to my
liking, and steeped me in happiness and love. I seemed to myself her
husband, I liked to watch her busied with little details; it was a
pleasure to me even to see her take off her bonnet and shawl. She left
me alone for a little, and came back, charming, with her hair newly
arranged; and this dainty change of toilette had been made for me!

"During the dinner she lavished attention upon me, and put charm without
end into those numberless trifles to all seeming, that make up half of
our existence nevertheless. As we sat together before a crackling
fire, on silken cushions surrounded by the most desirable creations
of Oriental luxury; as I saw this woman whose famous beauty made every
heart beat, so close to me; an unapproachable woman who was talking and
bringing all her powers of coquetry to bear upon me; then my blissful
pleasure rose almost to the point of suffering. To my vexation, I
recollected the important business to be concluded; I determined to go
to keep the appointment made for me for this evening.

"'So soon?' she said, seeing me take my hat.

"She loved me, then! or I thought so at least, from the bland tones in
which those two words were uttered. I would then have bartered a couple
of years of life for every hour she chose to grant to me, and so prolong
my ecstasy. My happiness was increased by the extent of the money I
sacrificed. It was midnight before she dismis