“ Do you love me?”
“ Why, of course I love you,” he answered.
“ A great deal?”
“ Certainly!”
“ You haven’t loved any others?”
“ Did you think you’d got a virgin?” he exclaimed laughing.
Emma cried, and he tried to console her, adorning his protestations with puns.
“ Oh,” she went on, “I love you! I love you so that I could not live without you, do you see? There are times when I long to see you again, when I am torn by all the anger of love. I ask myself, Where is he? Perhaps he is talking to other women. They smile upon him; he approaches. Oh no; no one else pleases you. There are some more beautiful, but I love you best. I know how to love best. I am your servant, your concubine! You are my king, my idol! You are good, you are beautiful, you are clever, you are strong!”
He
