‘Granted,’ said Mrs. Wilmington, but not cordially; and having placed two slices of mutton on each plate went away.
‘It is jolly having meals by ourselves,’ said Charlotte; ‘only I wish she wasn’t cross.’
‘We ought to be extra manner-y, I expect, when we’re by ourselves,’ said Caroline. ‘May I pass you the salt, Charles?’
‘No, you mayn’t,’ said Charles. ‘Thank you, I mean; but there’s one at each corner. That’s one each for us, and one over for——’
‘For her.’ Charlotte pointed to the picture of the dark-eyed, fair-haired lady.
‘Let’s put a chair for her,’ said Charlotte, ‘and pretend she’s come to dinner. Then we shall have to behave like grown-up people.’
‘I never can remember about behaving,’ said Charles wearily; ‘such a lot of things—and none of them seem to matter. Why shouldn’t you drink with your mouth full? It’s your own mouth.’
‘And eating peas with your knife. I think it would be as good as conjuring, doing it without cutting yourself’—Charlotte tried to lift the peas from her plate with her knife—‘let alone the balancing,’ she added, as they rolled off among the mutton.
‘Don’t,’ said Caroline. ‘She’s looking at you. Charles, you’re the only gentleman, worse luck—I wish I was a boy—put a chair for her.’
And a large green-seated chair, whose mahogany back was inlaid with a brass scroll pattern, was wheeled to the empty space on the fourth side of the table.