“How could you?” There was reproach in her accent.
“It did come hard; I’m a little out of practice.”
“Did you tell her about—about me?”
“I had to, Constance. When it came to the necessity of squaring all of Gustavo’s yarns, my imagination gave out. Anyway, I had to tell her out of self-defence; she was so superior. She said it was just like a man to muddle everything up. Here I’d been ten days in the same town with the most charming girl in the world, and hadn’t so much as discovered her name; whereas if she had been managing it—You see how it was; I had to let her know that I was quite capable of taking care of myself without any interference from her. I even—anticipated a trifle.”
“How?”
“She said she was engaged. I told her I was too.”
“Indeed!” Constance’s tone was remote. “To whom?”
“The most charming girl in the world.”
“May I ask her name?”
He laid his hand on his heart in a gesture reminiscent of Tony. “Costantina.”