“Yes; and one day you catches us at it,” sketched Mr. Dobbs, knowingly. “And you accuses us of flirting, and you ’as a tremendous row with ’er, and, though it breaks your ’eart, you casts ’er off! And there you are—free! And you can bet that quarrelling with her ma will give you a good send-off to begin courting Ann with. You can see that she’s that sort.”
“Yes; and what ’appens to you?”
“Oh, I get that job on the ‘Alert’,” answered Horace, simply. “You can trust me to protect myself safe enough where women are concerned.”
Captain Gooster, weighing the pros and cons, could detect no flaw in the scheme. Next afternoon, by appointment, he met Mr. Dobb at the corner of Fore Street, and together they repaired to the little second-hand shop. Enthusiastically did Mrs. Goffley bid them enter and stay to tea, an invitation which was signalized, rather than seconded, by a prolonged sniff from the younger lady.
Mr. Dobb, now reversing his behaviour of the previous evening, exhibited himself in the light of a sparkling blade. Riddles galore did he propound to enliven the proceedings, and many were the diverting anecdotes he furnished forth, though, indeed, in some of these he checked himself, finishing them a trifle lamely with endings which had the flavour of improvisation about them.
His geniality, however, went far towards neutralizing the acrimony of Miss Goffley, and by the time adieux were said Captain Gooster was well satisfied with his confederate.
“I reckon you’ve made a fine start, ’Orace,” he said, as they strolled together down Fore Street. “And to-morrow you must talk more particularly to the old gal, so as to give me a chance to try to make up a bit of the leeway with Ann.”
Such heed did Mr. Dobb give to this instruction that when, on the following evening, they called at the little shop, he devoted his conversation almost exclusively to the widow.
“Splendid!” was his patron’s verdict, when they left. “I see she was a bit impatient at first, but before long she was listening to every word you said. Why, she never even noticed that I was talking quite a lot to Ann.”
“Ah, and she was answering you, what’s more! I see you! What did you say to ’er?” asked Mr. Dobb, curiously.