Beauchene, the godfather, had
selected Madame Seguin as his _commere_, for, since the death of Maurice,
Constance shuddered at the bare thought of touching a child. At the same
time she had promised to be present at the lunch, and thus there would be
ten of them, sufficient to fill the little dining-room of the modest flat
in the Rue de La Boetie, where the young couple resided pending fortune's
arrival.
It was a very pleasant morning. Although Mathieu and Marianne had been
unwilling to set aside their black garments even for this rejoicing, they
ended by evincing some gentle gayety before the cradle of that little
grandson, whose advent brought them a renewal of hope. Early in the
winter a fresh bereavement had fallen on the family; Blaise had lost his
little Christophe, then two and a half years old, through an attack of
croup. Charlotte, however, was already at that time again _enceinte_, and
thus the grief of the first days had turned to expectancy fraught with
emotion.
The little flat in the Rue de La Boetie seemed very bright and fragrant;
it was perfumed by the fair grace of Andree and illumined by the
victorious charm of Ambroise, that handsome loving couple who, arm in
arm, had set out so bravely to conquer the world.
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