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228 a poem by my ex-fiancé. He will certainly be there—and she too. I have not yet seen her, and should like to do so. There will also be piano and vocal music. Not a bad programme."

"Of course I shall be much pleased, but—have you considered &hellip; ?"

"Oh, don't worry, I shall manage all right. &hellip; It can surely make no great impression upon me."

She smiled.

"I should not have forced myself on you; but since Lola Wildenhoff's departure, I have no one but you to do me this service. I am now so very easy to upset; and any want of tact jars upon me so!"

"I fancied that you were on pretty intimate terms with Idalia."

"Not at present. True, she is still, as she always was, as discreet as can possibly be. But she has too much sentiment and sympathy—far too much; and that is annoying and mortifying. You, so tranquil, so quiet, so entirely unmoved, act on my nerves as a sedative. I can talk with you even more openly than with Lola."

"Oh, have you heard from her?"