She nodded at him, like a child who would like to lie its way out of a scrape.
“But then I often cry over trifles,” she added.
“Like my going away?”
“Really, Max, you ought to be able to understand why I cried over Lee’s engagement. It was Nancy who brought me the news, and she was so triumphant over it. She said every one would think he had been making a fool of me. You know she has the power of teasing me more than any one in the world—except, perhaps, you.”
“I have a piece of news for you, Christine.”
“Good or bad?”
“Indifferent, I think you would say. It’s a scientific discovery.”
“An invention, Max? Could I understand it?”
“I think you can if you make an effort.”
“What is it?”