Page "Modesty Blaise" Paragraph 2

During these years she met Willie Garvin.

Despite the desperate life he was leading, she saw his potential and offered him a job.

Inspired by her belief in him, he pulled through as her right-hand man in The Network and became Modesty's most trusted friend.

Theirs is a strictly platonic relationship and is based on mutual respect and shared interests.

He has always called her " Princess ", a form of address only he is allowed to use.

Other members of The Network would call Modesty " Mam ' selle " ( as in the French term " Mademoiselle " or " Miss ").

Though their relationship has no sexual element, it is Modesty's various lovers who feel jealous of Garvin, rather than the other way around-as he is the only man who remains part of her life, while lovers come and go.

By the same token, some of Willie's girlfriends are initially jealous of Modesty, before in some cases-such as Lady Janet-coming to understand how the dynamic works between them.