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he had said was stupid, and besides, he had later admitted that I was right on that point.

This wasn't the way to talk to a prince of royal blood, I didn't have a minimum of "savoir vivre*," Monique was impatient. It was the first time we had argued. I decided that it had to remain the only time and on the following weekend when I learned that Aleksandr's younger brother, Niki, would come there, so as not to risk further sorrows, I promised myself to be very silent.

At the large candlelit table, neatly combed, long dress and shiny earrings of genuine Parisian fake diamonds, I remained in dignified silence until Francois Edmond-Blanc, who sat next to me, in a dramatic voice declared: "Adriana, has mortally offended me!"

I was surprised. I had sympathy for Francois, who in addition to being among the best rifles in France was an interesting man because his passion for hunting had led him to other parts of the world. "Some time ago she explained to me that at lunches there is often little or no magic because she is more interested in chatting." continued Francois. "And that she only focuses on food if she has a boring neighbor. She has an obvious appetite tonight, Adriana. It was harder for me to extract a yes or no from her mouth than a gazelle from a lion's jaws. So terribly boring, Adriana?"

I burst out laughing. I resumed chatting as usual and soon I realized that from the opposite side of the table Prince Niki was giving me more and more frequent glances. Passing into the living room, I found him sitting next to me.

I found him close to me the next day as well, when we all went to visit a nearby castle. Already on the drawbridge Francois Edmond-Blanc and Jean de Beaumont were distracted discussing the next hunt in Alsace. Monique had stopped to take historical notes while her sister, Jacqueline de Ribes, had decided to just take...

* French for ability to live elegantly