The World of Courtesans c8.256

c8.256

Expectancy also played an important part in the meeting of the lovers. The heroine, when she was a lady of position as a courtesan, waited for her lover listening to the ringing of the bell as the hours slipped by. The bell struck the hour when he was expected and she rushed to the gate, her body trembling with anxiety. Holding on to the door-frame with the left hand and the door-leaf with the right, she waited for the arrival of her lover. During her waiting moments she showed signs of emotional stress. She sighed, dropped down on a seat and wondered whether some unforeseen calamity had befallen him or whether his official duties, his friends or some other women had prevented him from keeping his appointment with her.