So it came to pass, when the coffee-table was brought in, that they walked up together to the new sofa, polished mahogany and yellow satin, finished with winged Sphinxes in gilded bronze, where Madame de Sainfoy and General Ratoneau were sitting side by side.
The Prefect, of course, had brought his hostess back from the dining-room and had stood talking to her for a few minutes afterwards. But the General, having deposited his lady, came clanking up almost immediately to rejoin Madame de Sainfoy.
"Allow me, my dear Prefect," he said. "I have not finished an interesting talk with Madame la Comtesse."
Monsieur de Mauves looked at him, then glanced at her with a questioning smile.
"Yes, it is true. We had just touched on a subject of the very deepest interest," she said.
Her look, her smile, seemed to glide over the Prefect's tall figure and pleasant face, as if he was merely a not disagreeable obstacle, to rest thoughtfully, with satisfaction, on Ratoneau in his gorgeous uniform.
"Listen! I will confide in you, and then you will understand," said the General, seizing the Prefect's arm. "I am going to consult Madame la Comtesse on the subject of a marriage."
He showed his teeth in a broad smile, staring into the Prefect's face, which did not change in its expression of easy good-humour.
"Whose marriage, may I ask? Your own?"
"You have said it, monsieur. My own. Could I do better?"