One of my friends spent a week-end with us. He made himself very agreeable to her. She rewarded his courtesy by flirting with him outrageously. It grew late; we said good-night to each other and separated. I thought that she had gone to bed.
Half-an-hour later I heard voices on the balcony. I stepped out quickly, and found wife and friend sitting together, drinking liqueurs. I treated the matter as a joke, but on the following morning I reproached her with making me a public laughing-stock.
She laughed, called me a man of prejudices, cursed with a fantastic and vicious imagination ... in fact, deluged me with her whole repertory of futile arguments.
I lost my temper; she had hysterics and played her part so well that I apologised for doing her an injustice. Doing her an injustice—when I considered her conduct absolutely culpable!
Her final words silenced me completely.
"Do you think," she said contemptuously, "I could bear to go through divorce proceedings a second time?"
And brooding over my troubles I slept with the calm of the duped husband.
What is a coquette?... A woman who makes advances. Coquetry is nothing but making advances.
And what is jealousy?... The fear of losing one's most precious possession.... The jealous husband? A ridiculous individual because of his absurd objection to lose his most precious possession.