She followed him, and drew him back into the room. "Don't be silly, dearest. You know I don't want you to go!" He wheeled in her arms, and kissed her with tragic passion. His face was wet with tears. "Oh, Anne, if I should lose you!" "You won't, poor dear, you won't!" she cried brokenly. She drew him down on to the chaise-longue beside her. He laid his head upon her shoulder. "Torrigiani will not be in Florence," she explained, leaning her cheek against the thick, soft hair. "He expects to go direct to Sicily. If he were to be there I should not want to go. It would be too humiliating." "Does he know? Have you told him about us?" There was a throb of incredulous joy in Alexis' voice. "Yes." Her head drooped beneath the crimson stain that surged up to her forehead. "Oh, Anne, can you ever forgive me?" "Yes, dear. Only don't try me too often. Just take me for granted sometimes." "Oh, I mean to, God knows. Only I'm so afraid of losing you. There are so many men in your life. And I am tied." She laid commanding fingers upon his lips. "That subject is taboo! Don't you dare bring it up again! But tell me how did you know about Torrigiani!" she inquired with a certain curiosity. Had the probing blue orbs belonged to Mme. Petrovskey after all? "My mother told me," he replied simply. "She saw you go out together. She came behind to see me afterward. However, I scarcely believed her. I thought she must have mistaken some one else for you. She had only seen you once, you know. But when I arrived, and you hadn't come, I suddenly knew it was all true. I wanted to strangle poor old Regina and her congratulations. That was almost an hour ago. I was just thinking of going when you came." She pressed his head against her slim bosom. "Poor darling, it must have been awful. But you didn't suppose I could forget that I had invited you to supper to-night of all nights?" "I'm a fool, I realize it. But I'm so mad about you, I'm really not sane," he whispered, his lips against the satin of her throat. "You're an angel to put up with me." She laughed and put him aside. Springing to her feet she gave the bell-rope a vigorous pull. "Nonsense! No angel could possibly be as hungry as I am at present. Let us see what Regina can do for us." But the appetite was rather a pretense on both sides. They were too excited to eat. With a discreet smile, Regina wheeled in the supper on a tea wagon, and insisted upon leaving them immediately, in spite of Alexis' efforts to make up for his former unamiability. "The Signorino must eat. Even music must die on the empty stomach." There were oysters on the half-shell, cold duck and a varicolored salad that rivaled a Neapolitan sunset. Alexis opened the champagne himself. "It was awfully banal to have it," laughed Anne. "But we simply had to to-night, you know." She raised her glass and smiled at him, over its miniature golden cauldron. "To Alexis Petrovskey and his triumph!"