Konrad and Alexandra (PDF) - Rolf Gross

She had done her hair up in a new way. She had trimmed her long, black tresses and wound them into a vertical rollabove her nape. She looked several years older. The soft, feminine hairdo and her dress complemented each otherperfectly."Do you think you could present me like this at your garden party in St. Petersburg next summer?" She smiledseductively. "And don’t you already see the envious looks of all the ladies?"Konrad did not dare to embrace this fabulous creature so he kissed her hand. She put her arm through his and theywalked across the dance floor to their reserved table.They had barely sat down when a very young man with dreamy eyes rushed up to them and asked Konrad for hispermission to dance with Alexandra. Konrad, taken aback, nodded resigned and deferred the decision to Alexandra."Konrad, may I introduce Dato Ortaladze to you, Professor Konrad Rost, my fiancé. David is a friend of our family. Dato,please forgive me, I would like to dance the first dance with my fiancé, but do come back a little later, I have not seen youfor a long time."Dato flushed and apologized, mumbling that she had never looked more stunning.A bottle of champagne and various French-style appetizers arrived. Konrad left it all standing and asked Alexandra for adance."You better hold onto me," she said as she took his arm, "or as you see, I will vanish faster than you can say my name!"Konrad danced beautifully, she nestled herself into his arms."Konrad, who taught you to dance like this? Oh," she bit her lip, "I shouldn’t ask, I don’t need to know.""Her name was Sonya." He smiled at her. "She is no secret. She was a beautiful, blond medical student, and I wasunsterblich verliebt in sie. I met her on a New Year’s Eve ball in Berlin. She danced like a goddess, but she already had aboyfriend and was not interested in me. Regrettably I never danced with her again after that evening."Alexandra leaned her head on his shoulder and whispered, "Please forgive my question.""But why?" He said into their closeness. "Let there be no secrets between us, ever. Let us do only those things, which weneed not keep from each other. Let us never possess each other, but be free and one at the same time."The next dance was a fast waltz."Do you want to return to the table?" Konrad asked."No, I want to dance with you, but I have never danced a fast waltz before.""Never mind, just let yourself go! You will learn very quickly."He took her to the periphery of the dance floor and showed her the most important steps.Most people had left the dance floorShe was the most pliable pupil, and in a very short time they were dancing as if they had danced the waltz together foryears. Turning in perfect harmony they flew over the dance floor. Alexandra had her eyes closed. Her slender body in thetight dress was truly bewitching.The other couples had stopped dancing and were watching them. Applause broke out when the music stopped.Alexandra made a deep curtsy before Konrad, and he kissed her hand.Later David Ortaladze and his girlfriend joined them, and Konrad danced with Laila, a dark, sensuous beauty, to giveDato a chance to take Alexandra to the floor.Dato wanted to study medicine in St. Petersburg, but was considering spending his clinical years at Jena in Germany. Hespoke German well and was most eager for advice. Konrad encouraged him, but Dato’s eyes were glued to Alexandra’sfigure. Laila showed signs of neglect, her body hung limp on her chair, her bored eyes wandered around the room. Shespoke no German.A pang of resentment hit Konrad. He asked himself, was he jealous? He shook his head. This young man, though helooked the proverbial, dashing, Georgian hothead, was not much older than sixteen. How could he be a serious dangerto him? He had better get used to living with a most desirable, extroverted woman.A slow waltz followed and Konrad asked Alexandra to dance."Do you know what jealousy is?" he asked her."Well, I think Laila suffers from it. How about you?""Does it show?" Konrad was appalled by the thought."Yes," she admitted, "to me anyway.""What can I do about it? Do you know how to make it go away, or do you enjoy seeing me jealous? As a proof, maybe, ofhow much I love you?"Her blue eyes lost their sparkle, with a reproachful undertone she said. "Dearest Konrad, I may seem frivolous to others,but I am not with you. Dear man, you challenge me in ways nobody else could, but other men might evoke aspects of methat you have no access to or know nothing about."She looked at his worried face and kissed the hand that held her close. "I will always return to you. However, at times Iwill allow other men to provoke me, and this may even become a serious exploration. But I will do this only to show youthese other aspects of me or to understand them myself, not to test our love, but to expand it."She held him at a distance. "Could you live with this condition of my love? As you said, we should never possess each33