asked Lotte. “What’s who like?”“The current wife.”Charlie was willing, in general terms, to talk about his young men. He didn’t like to talk about his marriages. They were one of the few things in his life he was ashamed of. “My first wife I went to bed with; my second wife went to bed with my young men, she saved a good many souls in her time, I can tell you that; and the third I don’t know anything about. The current one lives in Switzerland. Which is why I’m here. She collects antiques. Stocks and bonds mostly.” He had forgotten his monocle. He seemed to miss it.“Oh,” said Lotte. It was one of his set pieces. She could remember the first wife, vaguely, a mousy, boyish, unobtrusive little creature who had thought Charlie a genius, and had no other interests in life at all. She didn’t even seem to mind the young men much. In those days they had all been young together. As for these divagations, they had been the thing to do.
