“I don’t think any more will be necessary,” replied Madge. “Philip agrees with me too.”
“And Mr. Dundas?”
“I don’t think he will ask me for any more either.”
Lady Ellington considered this a moment.
“But surely you had settled to have one more,” she said, “the one which you postponed.”
“Yes, but I think we all agree now that as far as I am concerned the picture is finished.”
Lady Ellington was not exactly puzzled; it would be fairer to say that though she did not quite know where this led, she was quite certain it led somewhere. It was not a puzzle; it was rather a clue. So she got behind a bush, as it were, and continued firing from there.
“He is a great friend of Philip’s, is he not?” she said. “I suppose you will see a good deal of him after your marriage?”
This sharp-shooting was frightfully trying to Madge’s nerves; she never knew where the next shot might be coming from. But in that it was now quite clear to her that shooting was going on, it was the part of wisdom to defend herself.
“Oh! I hope so,” she said, “he is charming. I expect he will be constantly with us.”