But I’m always true to you, darlin’, in my fashion,
Yes, I’m always true to you, darlin’, in my way.

These lines are from Cole Porter’s song “Always True to You in My Fashion,” written for the 1948 Broadway musical Kiss Me, Kate. In the show, the character Lois Lane (a glamorous, flirtatious performer) sings the number to her boyfriend Bill, defending her behavior: she may accept gifts and attention from wealthy admirers, but she insists she remains “true” to Bill—on her own terms. Porter wrote the song as a comic showstopper built around witty, escalating examples of temptation and rationalization, matching the musical’s backstage farce and its playful negotiation of fidelity, performance, and desire.

Porter’s joke hinges on the elastic phrase “in my fashion / in my way,” which reframes fidelity as a matter of personal definition rather than strict sexual exclusivity. The speaker claims loyalty while simultaneously admitting to flirtation and material opportunism, exposing how self-serving narratives can sanitize questionable conduct. In the context of musical comedy, the song satirizes romantic hypocrisy and the transactional aspects of courtship—how gifts, status, and attention can complicate “love.” The repeated assurance sounds sincere in tone but comic in logic, highlighting the gap between emotional attachment and behavioral restraint.