Anna Karenina (Penguin) - Leo Tolstoy [386]
Levin flushed much more than she did when she told him she had met Vronsky at Princess Marya Borisovna’s. It was very hard for her to tell him about it, and still harder for her to go on talking about the details of the meeting, since he did not ask but only looked frowning at her.
‘It’s too bad you weren’t there,’ she said. ‘That is, not that you weren’t in the room ... I wouldn’t have been so natural with you there ... Now I’m blushing much more, much, much more,’ she said, blushing to tears. ‘But that you couldn’t have looked through a crack.’
Her truthful eyes told Levin that she was pleased with herself, and, despite her blushing, he calmed down at once and began asking questions, which was just what she wanted. When he had learned everything, even to the detail that she could not help flushing in the first second, but after that had felt as simple and easy as with anybody at all, Levin cheered up completely and said he was very glad of it and that now he would not behave as stupidly as he had at the elections, but would try at the very first meeting with Vronsky to be as friendly as possible.
‘It’s so tormenting to think that there’s a man who is almost an enemy, whom it’s painful to meet,’ said Levin. ‘I’m very, very glad.’
II
‘So please call on the Bohls,’ Kitty said to her husband, when he came to see her at eleven o‘clock, before going out. ‘I know you’re dining at the club, papa signed you up. And what are you doing in the morning?’
‘I’m just going to visit Katavasov,’ answered Levin.
‘Why so early?’
‘He promised to introduce me to Metrov. I’d like to discuss my work with him. He’s a well-known Petersburg scholar,’ said Levin.
‘Yes, wasn’t it his article that you praised so much? Well, and then?’ said Kitty.
‘I may also go to the court on my sister’s business.’
‘And to the concert?’ she asked.
‘As if I’d go alone!’
‘No, do go. They perform these new things ... You were so interested. I wouldn’t miss it.’
‘Well, in any case I’ll call in at home before dinner,’ he said, looking at his watch.
‘Put on your frock coat, so that you can call on Countess Bohl on the way.’
‘But is it absolutely necessary?’
‘Oh, absolutely! He called on us. Well, what will it cost you? You’ll go, talk about the weather for five minutes, get up and leave.’
‘Well, you won’t believe it, but I’m so unaccustomed to these things that it makes me ashamed. How is it? A stranger comes, sits down, stays for no reason, bothers them, upsets himself, and then leaves.’
Kitty laughed.
‘You paid calls when you were a bachelor, didn’t you?’ she said.
‘I did, but I was always ashamed, and now I’m so unaccustomed to it that, by God, I’d rather go two days without dinner than pay this call. Such shame! I keep thinking they’ll be offended and say: “Why come for no reason?”’
‘No, they won’t be offended. I can answer for that,’ said Kitty, looking into his face and laughing. She took his hand. ‘Well, good-bye ... Please go.’
He was just about to kiss her hand and leave when she stopped him.
‘Kostya, you know, I only have fifty roubles left.’
‘Well, then I’ll go and get some from the bank. How much?’ he said, with an expression of displeasure familiar to her.
‘No, wait.’ She held on to his hand. ‘Let’s talk, this bothers me. I don’t think I spend on anything unnecessary, but the money just goes. We’re doing something wrong.’
‘Not at all,’ he said, clearing his throat and looking at her from under his eyebrows.
She knew that clearing of his throat. It was a sign that he was strongly displeased, not with her, but with himself. He was indeed displeased, not that a lot of money had been spent, but that he was reminded of something which he, knowing that things were not right, had wished to forget.
‘I’ve told Sokolov to sell the wheat and