"You are living so much in your shell. Why do you do it?"
"Why not, if it pleases me?" he asked pouring out two cups of tea.
"Think of all you lose!"
"I generally manage to take what I want," he replied with an insolent smile. "I rarely suffer from loss."
"You lose love," said she wisely.
"What do you know about it?" he questioned, fixing her with his penetrating eyes.
"I love my husband——"
"—And your baby, even more. Of course your experience is immense!"
"You are sarcastic," she said reproachfully. "I love my husband and my baby in quite different ways. You have no wife or baby, so you cannot understand. Men like you go through life without knowing any of its real joys."
"That is according to your point of view," he retorted. "In any case, marriage is a great gamble and it's best to avoid risks."