He had shown her
nothing of what he felt, except perhaps a slight annoyance at not
being put in possession of the secret. It was natural, she
thought, that he should be a little out of temper, but as she saw
no way of remedying the trouble except by exposing to him the
innocent girl whom she had undertaken to protect, she held her
peace and trusted that her husband's displeasure would soon be
past. Had there been more time for reflection on the previous
evening, in the interval between her learning from the porter that
Giovanni knew of her absence, and her being confronted with
Giovanni himself, she might have resolved to act differently; but
having once made up her mind that he ought not to know the truth
for the present, opposition only strengthened her determination.
There was nothing wrong in the course she was pursuing, or her
conscience would have spoken and bidden her speak out. Her nature
was too like Giovanni's own, proud, reserved, and outwardly cold,
to yield any point easily. It was her instinct, like his, to be
silent rather than to speak, and to weigh considerations before
acting upon them. This very similarity of temper in the two
rendered it certain that if they were ever opposed to each other
the struggle would be a serious one.
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