Presently, however, seeing that Sasha showed signs of crossing the room in order to approach her, she said quickly:-- "See, Constantine, now he comes; when it is quite clear that his intention is to speak to me, I will rise and you shall give me your hand to escort me away!" "Good," exclaimed her cousin delightedly. "Yes, that's the way he should be treated--see, he is approaching--come!" The two young cousins rose and passed down the room, almost meeting Sasha Maximof, who stopped, obviously expecting them to do the same. "Demidof," he said, "be so kind as to present me to your friend." Vera passed on, taking no notice whatever. Constantine looked round, over his shoulder. "You will have to wait now, my friend, until she is a little older," he said, and Vera pinched his arm with delight. "Bravo, cousin," she said, "that was splendid." "It was rather daring," said Constantine, somewhat ruefully, "to a senior cadet; I don't know what will happen to me." Sasha returned to his charmer, who, unfortunately, had witnessed his discomfiture. "You've met your match, my friend!" she laughed; "she's decidedly pretty, too, when one sees her closely." "She's an impudent little minx at any rate," said Sasha, laughing also, though somewhat artificially, and at the same time flushing hotly; he was not used to rebuffs from the fair sex. "By such conduct--revealing a tendency to bad manners--she commits _felo de se_ as regards--well--a certain object she has in view." On the way home Vera, following up some train of thought, remarked to her cousin that it was a pity Sasha Maximof was so good-looking; to which Constantine replied that he did not see much to admire in the fellow. CHAPTER VI. The Boyar Demidof, though not by profession a diplomat, had procured for himself an appointment as Attaché to the Embassy in Paris, in order to be near his daughter as well as his married sister. Vera's presence in St. Petersburg was in the nature of a flying visit. She would return with her mother to Paris in a month or two. During that period she saw little of Sasha Maximof. He called upon the Demidofs once or twice, but was obviously but little attracted by Vera, whom he treated as a child, and from whom he did not attempt to conceal the fact that he had on hand more than one _affaire de coeur_ and that he thought but little, if anything, of the contract entered into by their respective fathers when both of the principal parties were too young to understand the nature of the proceedings.