Colin, according to his wont, slept dreamlessly, and woke to find Nino’s hand on his shoulder, rousing him.
“Wake, signor,” he said.
Colin yawned and stretched himself.
“I’ll raise your wages, Nino, if you’ll go away,” he said.
“The signora——” began Nino.
Colin broke off his yawn and began to laugh.
“Good Lord, yes,” he said. “Well, what about the signora? I hope she had as good a night as I.”
“She did not sleep in her bed,” said Nino, “and she is not in the house.”
“Well, what then? She’s gone by the early boat; I thought she very likely would. So cool in the early morning. Probably she has left a note for her maid to say so. Look and find it. I’ll have breakfast out of doors.”
He got out of bed, and while he dressed basked in the wonderful memories of the night before. Just here had she stood for that short moment ... and then with that odd gesture of folding something round her had turned.... What a horrid humiliated night she must have passed, too badly stung to sleep, and only eager for the morning, and the boat that left at six o’clock, which would carry her away from the island. He wondered whether, if he had received a slap like that, he would have turned tail. Certainly it would have been an embarrassing breakfast next morning; they would have had to talk with great perseverance and animation. He rather thought that he would have stopped and brazened it out to show he didn’t care....