And Denise, too, was happy. He saw it in her shy eyes, in the softness of her smile, and presently Toni drew her closer to him and whispered:
“Denise, Denise, do you remember?” and Denise whispered back, “Yes, Toni, I remember all.”
And so as it was with Paul Verney and Lucie Bernard, they called each other by their first names when they were alone.
Presently in the mazes of the dance Toni looked up and there was Paul Verney passing through the square. He caught Toni’s eye and Toni grinned back at him rapturously. When the music stopped, Toni, putting Denise’s hand within his arm, escorted her back to the bench where Mademoiselle Duval sat knitting in the electric light. He contrived to pass directly in front of Paul Verney, whom he saluted respectfully, and Paul bowed low to Denise and said to her:
“Mademoiselle, we are both natives of Bienville, and I am most happy to see you here with your worthy aunt and your respected father,” and then Paul, with an eye single to Toni’s interests, walked on the other side of Denise up to where Mademoiselle Duval sat and promptly claimed acquaintance with her. In the old days at Bienville there had not been such a tremendous difference between Paul Verney, the poor advocate’s son, and the children of the pastry shop and the confectioner. Now Paul was an officer, but he was very pleasant and gentlemanlike, however, though quite dignified, and gave himself no haughty airs. He inquired with the deepest solicitude after Mademoiselle Duval’s health, remembered gratefully sundry tarts and cakes she had given him in the old days, and then said to her, in the most unblushing manner:
“And, Mademoiselle, we have here another citizen of Bienville, Marcel”—it was the first time that Paul had ever called Toni, Marcel, in his life—“who, I assure you, is worthy of our old town. He is strictly attentive to his duties, and the best rider in my troop. I predict that he will be a corporal before his enlistment is out.”
And thus having advanced Toni’s cause with his prospective aunt-in-law, Paul Verney withdrew, winking surreptitiously at Toni as he went off. It was impossible that Mademoiselle Duval should not revise her opinion of Toni after this testimony from his officer, so Toni at once found himself in a most acceptable position with Mademoiselle Duval. He danced twice more with Denise, carrying her off in the face of a couple of corporals, and, by his devoted attentions and insidious flattery of Mademoiselle Duval, gained that lady’s good-will. He would have liked to escort his old friends back to their lodging, but, as he explained, he barely had time to reach the barracks before the tap of the drum, and he scurried off, the happiest trooper in Beaupré that night.
When he neared the quadrangle on which the barracks faced, he overtook Paul Verney, and as he rushed past he whispered in his ear:
“Thank you, thank you, dear Paul.”
In that moment he could have not refrained, to save his life, from calling his lieutenant Paul.