Page 573 - of-human-bondage-

loved anyone but you. I never shall.’
She listened to his enthusiasm with smiling eyes. He
thought he saw in them a new tenderness, and he was grate-
ful to her. She was much gentler than she used to be. There
was in her no longer the superciliousness which had irri-
tated him. She was so accustomed to him now that she took
no pains to keep up before him any pretences. She no lon-
ger troubled to do her hair with the old elaboration, but just
tied it in a knot; and she left off the vast fringe which she
generally wore: the more careless style suited her. Her face
was so thin that it made her eyes seem very large; there were
heavy lines under them, and the pallor of her cheeks made
their colour more profound. She had a wistful look which
was infinitely pathetic. There seemed to Philip to be in her
something of the Madonna. He wished they could continue
in that same way always. He was happier than he had ever
been in his life.
He used to leave her at ten o’clock every night, for she
liked to go to bed early, and he was obliged to put in an-
other couple of hours’ work to make up for the lost evening.
He generally brushed her hair for her before he went. He
had made a ritual of the kisses he gave her when he bade
her good-night; first he kissed the palms of her hands (how
thin the fingers were, the nails were beautiful, for she spent
much time in manicuring them,) then he kissed her closed
eyes, first the right one and then the left, and at last he kissed
her lips. He went home with a heart overflowing with love.
He longed for an opportunity to gratify the desire for self-
sacrifice which consumed him.

Of Human Bondage