"
"Dear Vera, forgive me," and he kissed her plump white hand. "I will
suggest nothing, and will leave it all to you, but do not forget a
man's passions, and Gritzko, as we know, is not made of snow!"
"You all misjudge him, my poor Gritzko," the Princess said, hardly
mollified. "He has the noblest nature underneath, but some day you will
know."
It was late in the afternoon when Tamara appeared, to find a room full
of guests having tea. Her mind was made up, and she had regained her
calm.
She would use the whole of her intelligence and play the game. She
would be completely at ease and indifferent to Gritzko and would be
incidentally as nice as possible to Jack. And so get through the short
time before she must go home. "For," she had reasoned with herself
sadly, "If he had loved me really he would never have behaved as he has
done."
So when the Prince and Lord Courtray came in together presently, her
greeting to both was naturalness itself, and she took Jack off to a
distant sofa with friendly familiarity, and conversed with him upon
their home affairs.
"By Jove! you know, Tamara, you are awfully improved, my child," Lord
Courtray said, presently. "You've acquired some kind of a look in your
eye! If I wasn't so taken with that darling little Countess Olga I
should feel inclined to make love to you myself."
"You dear silly old Jack!" Tamara said.
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