"David Garnett - Still Life" - читать интересную книгу автора (Garnett David)

He didn't need to threaten any reprisal; his cold eyes were all the
warning Corinne needed.
"Don't take too long reaching a decision. You can have a couple of weeks
to consider it."
Corinne rose to her feet. "I can give you my answer now," she said. She
would not say yes, not without Robert.
Sir Graham held up his hand once more. "Don't be too hasty," he told
her. "I've asked you once, and that's all. If you refuse, then it's final." He
stubbed out the cigar, then added for emphasis: "And you will die. You
might live another thirty or forty years, growing old and feeble and senile,
but you will die. Think about it, Corinne, think about it."



Corinne stood naked in front of the full-length mirror on the bedroom
wall, examining herself, trying to remember herself twenty years ago тАФ
and wondering how she would look in another twenty years.
Twenty years wasn't long at all.
And time was cruder to a woman than a man. Would Robert still love
her when her skin was loose and wrinkled, her hair gray, her face thin, her
stomach fat... ? Already she had noticed the way that he looked at other
women тАФ younger women. He was still very handsome, tall and slim, but
the years would take their toll on him as well. But men seemed to age so
much more easily than women. They didn't live as long, there were more
old women than old men, but what consolation was that? Corinne didn't
want to grow old, and she didn't want to die.
But how could she live, accept the treatment, then watch as Robert
grew older and frailer, until he finally died while she remained the same?
The answer was simple: She couldn't.
She had known and loved Robert for so long, he meant more to her than
anything else in the world . . . than everything else in the world. She
couldn't give him up. She wouldn't want to live without him, which she'd
have to do if she accepted the treatment and Robert couldn't have it.
What was the point of living forever if it meant being alone? Corinne
could still remember how it had been before she met Robert, the endless
lonely days and the even longer lonely nights.
The cost of eternity was too high. She would give up everything, even
the offer of infinite tomorrows, for Robert, because without him she was
only half alive.
She didn't regret any of the years she had spent with Robert. They'd had
their problems and their arguments, but on the whole their relationship
had improved with time. She looked forward to spending the rest of their
lives together.
There was no need to tell Graham Anderson of her decision. If she
didn't get in touch, then he would realize she believed her first instincts
were correct and that she'd refused his offer. That night, as they held each
other close, Corinne said to Robert: "Tomorrow I'm going to start my final
portrait. I don't want any objections or discussion тАФ because I'm going to
paint you."
Robert opened his mouth to speak, but she put her hand across his lips.