"Gut! gut! I no untershtand. You must not--you must not shtill pe in loafe mit te peautiful Frédérique?" "Mon Dieu! no, my dear baron! When could I have fallen in love with her, pray? I never see her; I never meet her." "Gif me your hand, mein frent." "And yet, I confess that I have the greatest desire to see her and speak with her." "Ach, ja! I untershtand; and so haf I; to ask her vhy she haf forbid us to go to te Sordevilles." "I should not be sorry to know that. But I want to talk to her about something which interests me more." The baron drew back with a frown, and muttered: "You haf a teclaration to make to her--in secret--mit mystery!" "Sapristi! you are infernally tenacious in your ideas, baron. Once more, there is no question of a declaration! Why on earth have you taken it into your head that I am likely to fall in love with Madame Dauberny? Would it please you very much if I should?" "Ach! no! no! Gif me your hand, mein frent; I haf pin wrong. I am one pig fool!" The baron was still holding my hand, when a calèche stopped beside us and a voice said: "Would you like to take a short drive with me, messieurs?" We looked up and recognized Madame Dauberny, alone in an open calèche. Herr von Brunzbrack turned crimson with pleasure; for my part, I was well pleased to have met Frédérique at last. "Faith! madame," said I, "the baron and I were just talking of you." "Ja, loafely lady; ve haf pin talking of you." "I suspected as much; that is why I stopped. Well, messieurs, wouldn't you rather talk with me than confine yourselves to talking about me?" Our only reply was to enter the carriage without more ado. I seated myself opposite Frédérique, the baron by her side, and we drove away. XXXII A REVELATION Unless by keeping my eyes constantly lowered, I could not avoid looking often at Frédérique; and as I had no reason to lower my eyes, and, moreover, as I had always taken pleasure in looking at her, I was able at that moment to enjoy that pleasure to the full. Madame Dauberny was always dressed in good taste; that morning she wore a gray silk gown, cut very high, which was wonderfully becoming to her. But, after all, is it not rather the wearer who embellishes the gown? For example: I had often noticed that Frédérique's waists fitted her to perfection, and I had rarely noticed that fact in other women. Was it not because Frédérique had a beautiful figure? I was overjoyed to see that Madame Dauberny's face no longer wore that cold, stern expression which she had formerly adopted with me. Her face was entirely different; I could not say what it expressed, because, although she looked at me often, she never fixed her eyes on mine; but they shone with a brilliancy I had never before seen in them; they were at once softer and merrier than of old; they no longer had, for the moment at least, that ironical or severe expression to which I had once become accustomed.