Wilhelm did not give the impression of a man who was enjoying
himself. His discontented gaze persistently followed one dark head
adorned with a yellow rose.
Loulou, for of course it was she, wore a cream-colored silk crepon
dress. Her little feet in pale yellow satin shoes played at hide-
and-seek under her skirt. She looked charming, and seemed very
happy. She danced with a magic lightness and gracefulness, and she
showed an endurance which had elicited applause and acknowledgments
from her partners. People were delighted with her, and she hardly
allowed herself time to breathe, for as the privileged daughter of
the house, she wandered from one partner to another, trying hard to
offend as few of her admirers as possible by a refusal. But Wilhelm
had no cause for jealousy, as her sparkling eyes continually sought
his, and as often as she danced near him she gave him an
electrifying glance and a sweet smile, telling him that he might now
hold his head high like a conqueror, or humble himself with
languishing sentiment, that for her there was only one man in the
room, one man in all the mirrors, the handsome youth in the window
recess between the red silk curtains. In the short pauses she came
over to him and spoke a word or two, always the same sort of thing:
"Ah! how So-and-so worries me.
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