'And you are so good to her,' said the Prince, laying his hand on her fat, wrinkled fist.
'Che vuole? I have known her so long. And she has some such great qualities.'
'Ah, to whom do you say it?' And Prince Casamassima gazed at his boots again, for some moments, in silence. Suddenly he inquired, 'How does she look to-day?'
'She always looks the same: like an angel who came down from heaven yesterday and has been rather disappointed in her first day on earth!'
The Prince was evidently a man of a simple nature, and Madame Grandoni's rather violent metaphor took his fancy. His face lighted up for a moment, and he replied with eagerness, 'Ah, she is the only woman I have ever seen whose beauty never for a moment falls below itself. She has no bad days. She is so handsome when she is angry!'
'She is very handsome to-day, but she is not angry,' said the old lady.
'Not when my name was announced?'
'I was not with her then; but when she sent for me and asked me to see you, it was quite without passion. And even when I argued with her, and tried to persuade her (and she doesn't like that, you know), she was still perfectly quiet.'
'She hates me, she despises me too much, eh?'
'How can I tell, dear Prince, when she never mentions you?'
'Never, never?'
'That's much better than if she railed at you and abused you.'
