Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: Marie-louise. An actress! Then, Fernand, I want you to fall very much in love with this charming actress! Tell me her name, and I'll show you how Fernand. Don't bother yourself. When I am alone with her I feel even more wretched still! So wretched, that I would do anything to get away from her! Marie-louise. That is polite! Fernand. She notices it, too. One day she wrote on the tablecloth in a restaurant: "Your heart is somewhere else," and I didn't deny it. Marie-louise. What did she say then? Fernand. She said: "I know how that is." Marie-louise. Poor dear! Was it she that scratched you up like that? Fernand. No, I did it myself. Marie-louise. How? Fernand. Well, if you must know, night before last I couldn't sleep, so I went out and walked in the park, along the ravine. I saw your windows all lighted up. It was three o'clock in the morning, and yet you still had a light. And that light which would not go out nearly made me shriek. I did not shriek, but I dug my nails into my flesh. Marie-louise. You shall never see that light again, Fernand. Fernand. You will close the curtains? Thanks. Marie-louise. What folly! Fernand. Marise, if I could only die—if I could only die for you! Marie-louise [in a very decided tone]. Fernand! Fernand! I've had quite enough of this! I mean it! If you keep on this way I will really laugh at you. Now listen, I'm going to talk to you as if-you were a man, and you are going to act like a man, a loyal and courageous one, I know. First of all, Fernand, I owe you an apology. Yes, I know I flirted with you, I admit it. But I'd no idea you were so in earnest. I'm not a vain woman and I simply didn't believe you. But all my little coquetries meant nothing, absolutely nothing! I never really gave you a serious thoug...