"It would not be unnatural. All France might do the same. But pardon me, I do not know it."
"You mean that he has not confided in you. Well, well, do not lay hold of my words; you had eyes the night before last; you saw what I saw, what every one must have seen. You confessed as much to me yesterday, so do not contradict yourself now."
"Very well—yes!" Urbain smiled and bowed. "Let us agree that my poor boy may have such a fancy. But what does it matter?"
"Of course it does not really matter, because such a marriage would be absolutely impossible for Hélène. But it is better for a young man not to have such wild ambitions in his head at all. You know I am right. You agree with me. That is one reason why you are working with me now."
"It is true, madame. You are right. But did it not seem to you, the other night, that Angelot himself saw the impossibility—"
"No, it did not," she said, and her eyes flashed. "He had to protect himself from his uncle's madness—that was nothing. By the bye, that wonderful brother of yours has changed his mind about Henriette. He sent her here this morning with a letter to me, and she is now doing her lessons with Sophie and Lucie."
"I am delighted to hear it," said Urbain, absently. "But now, to return to our subject—the Ratoneau marriage—" he paused an instant, and whatever his words and actions may have been, Madame de Sainfoy was a little punished for her scorn of his son by the accent of utter disgust with which he dwelt on the General's name.
For she felt it, and he had the small satisfaction of seeing that she did. She had trodden on her worm a little too hard, in telling Ange de la Marinière's father that he might as well dream of a princess as of Hélène de Sainfoy.
"Yes, yes," she said hastily, and smiled brilliantly on Urbain as much as to say, "Dear friend, I was joking. We understand each other.—Tell me everything you did yesterday—what he said, and all about it," she went on aloud. "Ah, Hervé!" as her husband sauntered into the room—"do have the goodness to fetch me those patterns of silk hangings from the library. This dear Urbain has come at the right moment to be consulted about them."