V

She made him sit down, and sat down herself on his knees; then, with her arm round his neck, kissing him every moment on his moustache, his mouth, his eyes, she obliged him to tell her how this misfortune had come about.

He invented a touching story. He had been obliged to come to the assistance of his father, who found himself in difficulties. He had not only handed over to him all his savings, but had even incurred heavy debts on his behalf. He added: “I shall be pinched to the last degree for at least six months, for I have exhausted all my resources. So much the worse; there are crises in every life. Money, after all, is not worth troubling about.”

She whispered: “I will lend you some; will you let me?”

He answered, with dignity: “You are very kind, pet; but do not think of that, I beg of you. You would hurt my feelings.”

She was silent, and then clasping him in her arms, murmured: “You will never know how much I love you.”

It was one of their most pleasant evenings.

As she was leaving, she remarked, smilingly: “How nice it is when one is in your position to find money you had forgotten in your pocket⁠—a coin that had worked its way between the stuff and the lining.”

He replied, in a tone of conviction: “Ah, yes, that it is.”

She insisted on walking home, under the pretense that the moon was beautiful and went into ecstasies over it. It was a cold, still night at the beginning of winter. Pedestrians and horses went by quickly, spurred by a sharp frost. Heels rang on the pavement. As she left him she said: “Shall we meet again the day after tomorrow?”