Man and Maid

"Yes, was not that odd!--because of course the things which used to

attract me in you and which could again now, were there all the time."

"At that moment you were so occupied with 'Jim's blue eyes,' and his

'white nice teeth,' and 'how his hair was brushed,' and 'how well his

uniform fitted'--to say nothing of his D.S.O. and his M.C. that you

could not appreciate anything else."

"You have a V.C., your teeth are divine, and you too have blue eyes,

Nicholas--."

"Eye--please,--the singular or plural in this case makes all the

difference, but I shall have my new one in fairly soon now and then

illusion will help me!"

Nina sighed--.

"Illusion! I am just not going to think of what perhaps might have

happened if I had not been surrounded with illusion, last February--."

"Well, you can always have the satisfaction of knowing that as your

interest in Jim diminishes, so his will increase--George Harcourt and I

thrashed it all out the other day--and you yourself admitted it, when we

dined. To keep the hunting instinct alive is the thing--You will have

the fondest lover when you go back to Queen Street, Nina!"

"I--suppose so--. But would it not be wonderful if one had not to play

any game, but could just love and be so satisfied with each other that

there would not be any fear--."

Nina's eyes were sad--Did she remember my words at our last meeting?

"Yes that would be heaven!"

"Is that what you are dreaming about, Nicholas?"

"Perhaps."

"What a fortunate woman she will be!--And of yourself, what shall you

give her?"

"I shall give her passion--and tenderness, and protection, and

devotion--she shall share the thoughts of my mind and the aspirations of

my soul--."

"Nicholas!--you talking in this romantic way--she must be a miracle!"

"No--she is just a little girl."

"And it is she who has made you think about souls?"

"I expect so--."

"Well, I must not think of them, or of anything but what a good time we

shall all have when the war is over, and what nice things I've bought in

Paris--and of how good-looking Jim is--Let us talk of something else!"

So we spoke of every-day matters--and then we went into the parc--and

Nina stayed by my bath chair and amused me. But she does not know

anything about Versailles or its history--and she cannot make

psychological deductions--and all the time I was understanding with one

part of me that her hat was awfully becoming, and everything about her

perfect; and with another part I was seeing that her brain is

limited--and that if I had married her I should have been bored to

death!