The Suitors - By Cecile David-Weill Page 0,74
was definitely not in my father’s league and seemed unable to discern the degree of knowledge implied in such a response. How, therefore, could she have understood that even beyond his culture and education, my father was above all civilized? Nor could she ever appreciate the refined modesty with which he refused to show off anything at all, save incidentally, as when he might say, “Yes, that’s pretty, isn’t it; that vase belonged to Marie Antoinette. It was one of a pair, but the other is at the Petit Trianon …”
In short, there was no joy to be had from the gang of nitwits on our hands, and indeed I wondered who had saddled us with them. Opting to limit the damage, I decided to please my father: “Oh, Papa, I saw a documentary the other evening about bears …”
“Ah! I adore bears! You know, they don’t lose any muscle mass or proteins during the winter, because their fat reserves recycle wastes into energy. Discovering the secrets of their hibernation could therefore have phenomenal applications, such as speeding up the healing of wounds for athletes, or prolonging the viability of organs for transplants, by putting them into a state of clinical hibernation. Just imagine!”
“We’ll talk later?” asked Marie before she left for the airport.
“Of course, but will you be all right?”
“Yes, don’t worry. You know, what you said is true: I had a close call with Béno, he’s the sort to be avoided at all costs, even if it’s rather flattering to have slept with him. But I’ve thought things over and what really puzzles me is what we can possibly think we’re doing with our flop of a plan to find a husband. Anyway, in that department I feel I’ve done my bit. Share and share alike! So it’s your turn next weekend, don’t you agree?”
Weekend of July 28
THE FAMILY
Marie Ettinguer Laure Ettinguer
Flokie Ettinguer Edmond Ettinguer
THE PILLARS
Gay Wallingford Frédéric Hottin
THE REMAINDER OF THE LITTLE BAND
Odon Viel Laszlo Schwartz
THE ODDBALLS
Georgina de Marien Charles Ramsbotham
THE END-OF-JULY REGULARS
Jean-Claude Girault Astrid Girault
THE NEWCOMERS
Alvin Fishbein Vanessa Courtry
Nicolas Courtry Barry Sullivan, aka Anagan
SECRETARY’S NAME BOARD
M. and Mme. Edmond Ettinguer Master Bedroom
Mme. Laure Ettinguer Flora’s Room
(Arrival from Paris Air France Friday 5:00 p.m.)
Mlle. Marie Ettinguer Ada’s Room
(Arrival from Paris Air France Friday 5:00 p.m.)
Lady Gay Wallingford Peony Room
M. Frédéric Hottin Chinese Room
M. Odon Viel Turquoise Room
M. Laszlo Schwartz Lilac Room
Count and Countess Henri Démazure
(Departure 5:00 p.m. for the flight to Florence)
Viscountess de Marien Annex: Peach Room
Earl of Stafford (Charles Ramsbotham) Annex: Lime Room
M. and Mme. Jean-Claude Girault Annex: Coral Room
(Arrival via rental car approx. 5:00 p.m.)
M. Alvin Fishbein Yellow Room
(Arrival 6:00 p.m. by their own means with M. and Mme. Courtry)
M. and Mme. Courtry Sasha’s Room
On Fridays the house hummed with a kind of industrious tension like the buzzing of a beehive. It was flower day. And if our head butler hadn’t been chafing in a rest home, he would have been as busy as a bee. Roberto, a florist by training, customarily returned from the market with a van full of flowers of different scents and sizes intended for the various rooms in the house. He usually selected dahlias, thistles, lavender, cosmos, or amaranths for the loggia; branches of mulberry, wild angelica, or hawthorn for the entrance hall; and a selection of sweet peas and heirloom roses mixed with lady’s mantle, snowball bush, or astrantia for the table centerpieces. As for the room bouquets, they tended to include hydrangeas, dahlias, poppies, or phalaenopsis orchids. After unloading the van, Roberto would swiftly closet himself in a room equipped with copper sinks, next to the pantry, where he spent a good part of the morning creating bouquets he then placed throughout the house.
Fridays were also filled with the comings and goings of departing guests and new arrivals, so that day saw the Démazures leave for Italy as the Giraults arrived for a stay at L’Agapanthe, as they always did toward the end of July. Well-bred without being pedants or socialites, the Giraults were considered dream guests by their friends, who invited them for visits the length and breadth of France all summer long. Jean-Claude was known as a man of “exquisite” taste—a vague but pertinent term for his many qualities of refinement. To begin with, he was soigné, elegant in the English style but without ostentation, a personable man who always made a good impression. Judiciously modest and discreet with regard to his success in the field of furnishing fabrics, he was a good sport and a