Chamoureau changed color as he stammered:
"Yes, that's the name—Thélénie; that's the name I heard; or Madame—Madame——"
"Sainte-Suzanne?"
"Exactly—Sainte-Suzanne. Then I was not misinformed: you have been—you are that lady's lover?"
"I am not now; I have broken with her; I have entirely ceased to visit her."
The business agent leaped on the young man's neck and embraced him, crying:
"Is it possible? Dear Edmond! You no longer love her; you have broken with her completely! In that case, you are not my rival!"
"Well, well! what then, is the matter with you, Monsieur Chamoureau? what has taken hold of you? whence this outburst of joy? Can it be that you are in love with Thélénie?"
"I—no; I didn't say that; or, at all events, I ought not to say it; it's an impenetrable mystery. But still, if it were true, my dear friend—if I were secretly nourishing that passion in my heart—it would not make you angry with me?"
"I should think not! on the contrary, I would wish you all sorts of good luck in your love-affairs. Ah! I remember now what you said at the supper; that matchless creature, that woman who eclipsed all other women but who did not wish to be known, was she."