FREE BOOKS

Author's List




PREV.   NEXT  
|<   81   82   83   84   85   86   87   88   89   90   91   92   93   94   95   96   97   98   99   100   101   102   103   104   105  
106   107   108   109   110   111   112   113   114   115   116   117   118   119   120   121   122   123   124   125   126   127   128   129   130   >>   >|  
e letter which I wrote to you and do not make me leave you to-morrow; it would kill me." Marguerite drew the letter from her bosom, and handing it to me with a smile of infinite sweetness, said: "Here it is. I have brought it back." I tore the letter into fragments and kissed with tears the hand that gave it to me. At this moment Prudence reappeared. "Look here, Prudence; do you know what he wants?" said Marguerite. "He wants you to forgive him." "Precisely." "And you do?" "One has to; but he wants more than that." "What, then?" "He wants to have supper with us." "And do you consent?" "What do you think?" "I think that you are two children who haven't an atom of sense between you; but I also think that I am very hungry, and that the sooner you consent the sooner we shall have supper." "Come," said Marguerite, "there is room for the three of us in my carriage." "By the way," she added, turning to me, "Nanine will be gone to bed. You must open the door; take my key, and try not to lose it again." I embraced Marguerite until she was almost stifled. Thereupon Joseph entered. "Sir," he said, with the air of a man who is very well satisfied with himself, "the luggage is packed." "All of it?" "Yes, sir." "Well, then, unpack it again; I am not going." Chapter 16 I might have told you of the beginning of this liaison in a few lines, but I wanted you to see every step by which we came, I to agree to whatever Marguerite wished, Marguerite to be unable to live apart from me. It was the day after the evening when she came to see me that I sent her Manon Lescaut. From that time, seeing that I could not change my mistress's life, I changed my own. I wished above all not to leave myself time to think over the position I had accepted, for, in spite of myself, it was a great distress to me. Thus my life, generally so calm, assumed all at once an appearance of noise and disorder. Never believe, however disinterested the love of a kept woman may be, that it will cost one nothing. Nothing is so expensive as their caprices, flowers, boxes at the theatre, suppers, days in the country, which one can never refuse to one's mistress. As I have told you, I had little money. My father was, and still is, receveur general at C. He has a great reputation there for loyalty, thanks to which he was able to find the security which he needed in order to attain this position. It is wo
PREV.   NEXT  
|<   81   82   83   84   85   86   87   88   89   90   91   92   93   94   95   96   97   98   99   100   101   102   103   104   105  
106   107   108   109   110   111   112   113   114   115   116   117   118   119   120   121   122   123   124   125   126   127   128   129   130   >>   >|  



Top keywords:

Marguerite

 

letter

 
mistress
 

supper

 

position

 

sooner

 

wished

 

consent

 

Prudence

 

generally


distress

 
accepted
 
unable
 

evening

 
change
 
changed
 

Lescaut

 

father

 

receveur

 

country


refuse

 

general

 

needed

 

attain

 

security

 

reputation

 

loyalty

 

suppers

 

disinterested

 
appearance

disorder

 

caprices

 
flowers
 

theatre

 

wanted

 
Nothing
 

expensive

 
assumed
 

forgive

 
Precisely

moment

 

reappeared

 

hungry

 
children
 

handing

 

morrow

 
infinite
 

sweetness

 

fragments

 
kissed