A Noble Marriage - Chapter 24
Chapter 24 – Dance Only with Me (1)
“Mr Karenin, you should have brought her earlier.” Madam de Malere grinned and pretended to complain. Karenin responded with a polite smile.
When Anna saw Madame de Malere for the first time, she had felt the woman to be a bit unusual. It was not her outstanding appearance or the elegance in her gestures. Neither was it her clever, diplomatic methods that overwhelmed many men. But it was this singular look that Madame de Malere used to look at Karenin. It made her appear almost intangible, out of grasp. with a look.
This ambiguity in her manner was a unique trait that smart women possessed. The root cause of a woman’s popularity always lay in the fact that ordinary men could not get what they wanted from such a woman.
Anna had been among such women since she was twelve years old. There was no lack of intelligence and talent to be found in such company. Once such a woman sets her sights on a man, she would try her best to seduce the man. If she accidentally lost her heart to someone, a smart woman would never allow it to be known.
“I have heard of you before, but I had never seen you. I have seen you now and I realize that the rumors did not do justice. You are more beautiful and outstanding than I imagined, Madame Karenin.” Madam de Malere was generous with her compliments, just like a gracious hostess should be. Her dainty manner stole the attention away from Anna and many eyes were now completely drawn in by the Madame.
Anna smiled and thanked Madame De Malere. She pretended to be aloof of her charms. There was a momentary silence and Karenin took the opportunity to request Anna to speak with him alone. “What are you worried about, Mr Karenin? That she will lose her way in our house?” Madame de Malere took Anna’s hand affectionately and teased Mr Karenin.
An ordinary man would have replied with a gracious response of his own but Karenin was a serious man. He was oblivious to the flirtatious nature of Madame de Malere’s joke. “If you look after her for me, I naturally don’t have to worry about these problems.” Hearing him say that, Anna couldn’t help but smile. This time she was not going to tell Karenin the truth.
“Come on, Mrs Karenin. Many of our ladies want to meet you!” Madame de Malere said in an elegant tone, letting go of Anna’s hand and turning back to a dignified manner. Anna felt like she was an exhibit at the zoo but tried to keep a smile on her face. She was seated beside Madam de Malere but was surrounded by other ladies. She did not know them at all, whereas the ladies took a curious interest in Anna. They asked her many questions, some related to Petersburg which she could not answer.
“I’m sorry, Mrs Karenin. I forgot that you haven’t been married for a long time,” said a lady with too much powder on her face. Before Anna could respond, Madame de Malere swept in the converted and diverted attention away from Anna by becoming the focus herself.
“Mrs de Finais, I heard my husband say that the popular drama these days in Petersburg is ____”
The people thought to themselves: What if she a beauty? She is clueless. Perhaps her rich dowry is just a rumor. There are many families with empty names and no strength these days. On the other hand, our dear Madame de Malere is beautiful, wealthy and knowledgeable.
Anna knew what the people must be thinking of her. She did not care and instead was bored of the conversations. She could do nothing about as she was representing Karenin as well. It would be irresponsible and ungracious of her to walk away from these vain women.
She pretended to pay rapt attention to the conversation, but her mind was diverted by the thought of her husband. She couldn’t find him in the crowd.
“Sorry, I have to go to the dressing room.” Madame de Malere said apologetically, interrupting Anna’s thoughts. “Would anybody like to accompany me?”
“Yes, I’m going to the dressing room, too.” A plump young woman stood up, wearing an excessively embroidered skirt which was part beautiful and part terrible. The freckles on her neck and chest stood out despite the heavy neckline of her dress, like wheat that has just been taken off its shell.
The women’s interest returned to Anna, and more specifically, her dress. “Who is your tailor, Mrs Karenin?” A lady in her late twenties asked.
“I made it myself. It was originally a very ordinary velvet dress.” Anna replied honestly, and finally she was a little happy. She liked to talk about clothes, delicate embroidery and tailoring, and not just about the expensive pile with roubles.
The lady’s expression told Anna she had made a mistake in admitting that. This was era of money being paramount. In this flashy and eccentric circle, the value of something lay in its location and the person who owned it.
