In an instant she was disarmed and had stretched out a friendly hand.
“I wanted to be level with the future for one day,” she said. “Out in the fields we are as rich as we shall ever be.”
He nodded.
“The leaves would be no greener if all fame were ours,” he answered; and added, “but they’d seem greener. Come, if you like.”
“No, I’ll stay.”
She gave his hand a small pressure. He looked down on it as it lay in his palm. There was dirt upon her fingers from the scouring of pots and pans. As he noted this he laughed shortly.
“We must employ a Court manicurist when our Day dawns,” he said. “I could not worship a queen whose hands were soiled. Expect me about six.”
He closed the door behind him.
Who can pretend to fathom the deeps of a woman’s mind. Long after he had gone, Eve stood looking at her hands with solemn, frightened eyes.