Carnacs Folly | Page 6

so. He only stood over her, murmuring penance and asking her to
forget it.
"I can't forget it--I can't. No man but my father has ever kissed me
before. It makes me, oh! so miserable!" but she smiled through her
tears. Suddenly she dried her eyes. "Once a man tried to kiss me--and
something more. He was rich and he'd put money into Madame
Margot's millinery business. He was brilliant, and married, but he had
no rules for his morals--all he wanted was money and pleasures which
he bought. I was attracted by him, but one day he tried to kiss me. I
slapped his face, and then I hated him. So, when you kissed me to-day,
I thought of that, and it made me unhappy--but yes."
"You did not slap my face, Luzanne?"
She blushed and hung her head. "No, I did not; you are not a bad man.
He would have spoiled my life. He made it clear I could have all the
luxuries money could buy--all except marriage!" She shrugged her
shoulders.
Carnac was of an impressionable nature, but brought to face the
possibility of marriage with Luzanne, he shrank. If ever he married it
would be a girl like Junia Shale, beautiful, modest, clever and well
educated. No, Luzanne could never be for him. So he forbore doing
more than ask her to forgive him, and he would take her to lunch-the
last lunch of the picture-if she would. With features in chagrin, she put
on her hat, yet when she turned to him, she was smiling.
He visited her home occasionally, and Luzanne's father had a friend,

Ingot by name, who was sometimes present. This man made himself
almost unbearable at first; but Luzanne pulled Ingot up acridly, and he
presently behaved well. Ingot disliked all men in better positions than
himself, and was a revolutionary of the worst sort--a revolutionary and
monarchist. He was only a monarchist because he loved conspiracy and
hated the Republican rulers who had imprisoned him--"those
bombastics," he called them. It was a constitutional quarrel with the
world. However, he became tractable, and then he and Larue formed a
plot to make Carnac marry Luzanne. It was hatched by Ingot, approved
by Larue, and at length consented to by the girl, for so far as she could
love anyone, she loved Carnac; and she made up her mind that if he
married her, no matter how, she would make him so happy he would
forgive all.
About four months after the incident in the studio, a picnic was
arranged for the Hudson River. Only the four went. Carnac had just
sold a picture at a good price--his Christian Martyr picture--and he was
in high spirits. They arrived at the spot arranged for the picnic in time
for lunch, and Luzanne prepared it. When the lunch was ready, they sat
down. There was much gay talk, compliments to Carnac came from
both Larue and Ingot, and Carnac was excited and buoyant. He drank
much wine and beer, and told amusing stories of the French-Canadians
which delighted them all. He had a gift of mimicry and he let himself
go.
"You got a pretty fine tongue in your head--but of the best," said Ingot
with a burst of applause. "You'd make a good actor, a holy good actor.
You got a way with you. Coquelin, Salvini, Bernhardt! Voila, you're
just as good! Bagosh, I'd like to see you on the stage."
"So would I," said Larue. "I think you could play a house full in no
time and make much cash--I think you could. Don't you think so,
Luzanne?"
Luzanne laughed. "He can act very first-class, I'm sure," she said, and
she turned and looked Carnac in the eyes. She was excited, she was
handsome, she was slim and graceful, and Carnac felt towards her as he
did the day at the studio, as though he'd like to kiss her. He knew it was

not real, but it was the man in him and the sex in her.
For an hour and a half the lunch went on, all growing gayer, and then at
last Ingot said: "Well, I'm going to have a play now here, and Carnac
Grier shall act, and we all shall act. We're going to have a wedding
ceremony between M'sieu' Grier and Luzanne--but, hush, why not!" he
added, when Luzanne shook her finger at him, and said she'd do
nothing of the kind, having, however, agreed to it beforehand. "Why
not! There's nothing in it. They'll both be married some day and it will
be good practice for them. They can learn now how to do it. It's got to
be done--but yes. I'll find a Judge in the village. Come now, hands up,
those that will do it."