His Hour

Valonne was a charming person, and he and Tamara were great friends. He

chatted on now, and she smiled at him, but with ears preternaturally

sharpened she heard the conversation of the other pair.

It was this.

"Tantine, I am feeling the absolute devil tonight. Will you come and

have supper with me after this infernal ballet is over?"

"Gritzko--what is it? Something has disturbed you!"

He leant forward and rested his chin on his hands. "Well, your haughty

guest touched me with too sharp a spur, perhaps," he said, "but she was

right. I do waste my life. I have been thinking of my mother. I believe

she might not be pleased with me sometimes. And then I felt mad, and

now I must do something to forget. So if you won't sup--"

"Oh! Gritzko!" the Princess said.

"I telephoned home and ordered things to be ready. I know you don't

like a restaurant. Say you will come," and he kissed her hand. "I have

asked all the rest." And the Princess had to consent!

"You must promise not to quarrel any more with my godchild if we do. I

am sure you frighten and upset her, Gritzko--promise me," she said. He

laughed.

"I upset her! She is too cold and good to be upset!"

Tamara still continued to talk to Valonne, and presently they all moved

into the box, and the Prince sat down beside her, and again as he

leaned over in the shaded light that nameless physical thrill crept

over her. Was she really cold, she asked herself. If so, why should she

shiver as she was shivering now?

"I wonder if you have any heart at all, Madame?" he said. "If under the

mummy's wrappings there is some flesh and blood?"

Then she turned and answered him with passion. "Of course there is,"

she said.

He bent over still nearer. "Just for to-night, shall we not quarrel or

spar?" he whispered. "See, I will treat you as a sister and friend. I

want to be petted and spoilt--I am sad."

Tamara, of course, melted at once! His extraordinarily attractive voice

was very deep and had a note in it which touched her heart.

"Please don't be sad," she said softly. "Perhaps you think I was unkind

to-day, but indeed it was only because--Oh! because it seemed to me

such waste that you--you should be like that."

"It hurt like the fiend, you know," he said, "the thought of the damned

circus. I think we are particularly sensitive as a race to those sort

of things. If you had been a man I would have killed you."