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Anna Karenina - Part 5

Page 108

"But he ought to tell me so. I must know that it is so. If I

knew it, then I know what I should do," she said to herself,

utterly unable to picture to herself the position she would be in

if she were convinced of his not caring for her. She thought he

had ceased to love her, she felt close upon despair, and

consequently she felt exceptionally alert. She rang for her maid

and went to her dressing room. As she dressed, she took more

care over her appearance than she had done all those days, as

though he might, if he had grown cold to her, fall in love with

her again because she had dressed and arranged her hair in the

way most becoming to her.

She heard the bell ring before she was ready. When she went into

the drawing room it was not he, but Yashvin, who met her eyes.

Vronsky was looking through the photographs of her son, which she

had forgotten on the table, and he made no haste to look round at

her.

"We have met already," she said, putting her little hand into the

huge hand of Yashvin, whose bashfulness was so queerly out of

keeping with his immense frame and coarse face. "We met last

year at the races. Give them to me," she said, with a rapid

movement snatching from Vronsky the photographs of her son, and

glancing significantly at him with flashing eyes. "Were the

races good this year? Instead of them I saw the races in the

Corso in Rome. But you don't care for life abroad," she said

with a cordial smile. "I know you and all your tastes, though I

have seen so little of you."

"I'm awfully sorry for that, for my tastes are mostly bad," said

Yashvin, gnawing at his left mustache.

Having talked a little while, and noticing that Vronsky glanced

at the clock, Yashvin asked her whether she would be staying much

longer in Petersburg, and unbending his huge figure reached after

his cap.

"Not long, I think," she said hesitatingly, glancing at Vronsky.

"So then we shan't meet again?"

"Come and dine with me," said Anna resolutely, angry it seemed

with herself for her embarrassment, but flushing as she always

did when she defined her position before a fresh person. "The

dinner here is not good, but at least you will see him. There is

no one of his old friends in the regiment Alexey cares for as he

does for you."

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