But she sobbed out a
passionate confession, saying she had lied because she loved him: and
they could still go to Monte Carlo, with a plan she had, and try the
system with five-franc pieces instead of louis.
It was a long time since any one had loved Dauntrey. He was lonely, and
hated to hurt a woman. Besides, five-franc pieces were better than
nothing, and he was sick to death of South Africa.
They had got through the spring and summer in England partly on their
wits, partly through impressing landlords and travelling nonentities
with their social importance, and partly through their successes at
bridge. For they both played bridge extremely well, too well, it had
once or twice been said of Lord Dauntrey in South Africa.
Lady Dauntrey's "plan" was to get together as many paying guests as
possible, enlist their interest in the "system," or, if they could not
be persuaded into that, to earn for herself something even better than
board-money, by introducing rich girls to men of title. She had not
doubted her opportunities for thrusting her female pigeons into society,
or of getting hold of young foreign aristocrats, perhaps even
Englishmen, who were "out for dollars," as her girls would be out for
dukes--or the next best thing after dukes. And she had begun well.
The house she had secured was cheap; and she brought with her from
England three women who would alone pay more than enough to keep it up.
Her husband's friend, Dom Ferdinand de Trevanna, and his faithful
follower, the Marquis de Casablanca, had fulfilled a promise to meet
them at Monte Carlo on the day after their arrival at the villa.
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