II
If Lucien had followed his first inspiration to settle on the Croisic, the memories of that day spent at Le Pouliguen would have quickly faded. The next day, when he woke up, his short intoxication had disappeared, and his reason had triumphed over the surprise given to his imagination and senses. He now judged Miss Bérard as she should have been: physically, he had only praise to give her, and it was not without a certain emotion that he recalled the story of Desvignes and the moment when, going down to the beach to take his bath, she had appeared to him for the first time. But he also recognized the flaws that would keep any serious man away from her: the oddity of her manners, her overly eccentric conversation, her independence of character and certain dryness of heart, easy to gues
