He was hastening to pay
another visit, in which his heart was far more interested, and had
not intended to remain with La Lalli above five minutes. The
conversation between them had extended to a greater length; and the
Marchesino, eager as he was to get to the dear little room in the
Via di Sta. Eufemia, would have made it still longer, had not the
Diva dismissed him.
The talk between them had become far more interesting than any which
he had thought likely to pass between him and the famous singer.
This horrible doubt--no, not a doubt--he had not, would not, could
not doubt; but this germ of a doubt deposited in his mind by the
words she had spoken? Could she have had any second motive for
speaking as she had done? Surely not; surely all her manner and her
words showed sufficiently clearly that she was actuated by kindly
feelings towards him and by no unkindly feeling towards Paolina. Yet
unquestionably Paolina's instinctive prejudice against her would not
have been diminished by a knowledge of what the Diva had said.
Ludovico thought of the bitter and burning indignation with which
his darling would have heard the expression of the possibility of a
doubt of the uncalculating purity and earnestness of her love.
Nevertheless he felt that he should have liked to talk further with
Bianca on the subject; of course only to convince her of the
absolute injustice of her suspicions.
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