"
He paused, checked by Angela's expression.
"Please explain yourself, Marquis," she said in cold, calm accents,
"I am at a loss to understand you."
Fontenelle glanced at her and saw that her face had grown as pale as
it was recently flushed, and that her lips were tightly set; and in
a vague way he was sorry to have spoken. But he was secretly chafing
at everything,--he was angry that Sylvie had escaped him,--and
angrier still that Donna Sovrani should imply by her manner, if not
by her words, that she considered him an exceptional villain, when
he himself was aware that nearly all the men of his "Cercle"
resembled him.
"Pon-Pon is Signor Varillo's model," he said curtly, "I thought you
were aware of it. She appears in nearly all his pictures."
Angela breathed again.
"Oh, is that all!" she murmured, and laughed.
Fontenelle opened his eyes a little, amazed at her indifference.
What a confiding, unsuspecting creature was this "woman of genius"!
This time, however, he was discreet, and kept his thoughts to
himself.
"That is all," he said, "But . . . artists have been known to admire
their models in more ways than one."
"Yes," said Angela tranquilly, "But Florian is entirely different to
most men.
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