She asked if she should put these things away, and, Madame having bidden her get rid of them, she carried the whole collection off in the folds of her dress.

In the kitchen a sorting-out process began, and Madame's debris were shared among the servants.
That day Georges had slipped into the house despite Nana's orders to the contrary.

Francois had certainly seen him pass, but the servants had now got to laugh among themselves at their good lady's embarrassing situations.

He had just slipped as far as the little drawing room when his brother's voice stopped him, and, as one powerless to tear himself from the door, he overheard everything that went on within, the kisses, the offer of marriage.

A feeling of horror froze him, and he went away in a state bordering on imbecility, feeling as though there were a great void in his brain.