And when you are tired of me, tell me so, heart of my heart, and I will go away, for that is better than to hang like a chain on a young man's neck.

I will go away, and God will forgive me, for to love you is all I know." His kisses closed her flashing eyes, and her lips parted in a faint, expectant smile, that was not disappointed.
So time passed, and Marcello heard occasionally from Corbario, and wrote to him once or twice, when he needed money.

Folco never alluded to Regina, and Marcello wondered whether he guessed that she had left Rome.
He was never quite sure how much Folco knew of his life, and Folco was careful never to ask questions.
But the existence Marcello was leading was not calculated to restore his strength, which had never been great, even before his illness.

Though Regina did not understand the language, she grew very fond of the theatre, for Marcello translated and explained everything; and it was such a pleasure to give her pleasure, that he forgot the stifling air and the late hours.

Moreover, he met in Paris a couple of acquaintances a little older than himself, who were only too glad to see something of the beautiful Regina, so that there were often supper-parties after the play, and trips in motorcars in the morning, horse races in the afternoon, and all manner of amusements, with a general tendency to look upon sleep as a disease to be avoided and the wish to rest as a foolish weakness.