‘You know what you once told me, about how necessary it was for a novelist to study all sorts of people. How can Mr Reardon do this if he shuts himself up in the house? I should have thought he would find it necessary to make new acquaintances.’
‘As I said,’ returned Amy, ‘it won’t be always like this. For the present, Edwin has quite enough “material.”’
She spoke distantly; it irritated her to have to invent excuses for the sacrifice she had just imposed on herself. Edith sipped the tea which had been offered her, and for a minute kept silence.
‘When will Mr Reardon’s next book be published?’ she asked at length.
‘I’m sure I don’t know. Not before the spring.’
‘I shall look so anxiously for it. Whenever I meet new people I always turn the conversation to novels, just for the sake of asking them if they know your husband’s books.’
She laughed merrily.
‘Which is seldom the case, I should think,’ said Amy, with a smile of indifference.
‘Well, my dear, you don’t expect ordinary novel-readers to know about Mr Reardon. I wish my acquaintances were a better kind of people; then, of course, I should hear of his books more often. But one has to make the best of such society as offers. If you and your husband forsake me, I shall feel it a sad loss; I shall indeed.’
Amy gave a quick glance at the speaker’s face.