When he was gone, the two sat without speaking for several minutes.
‘Do you care to make friends with those girls?’ asked Reardon at length.
‘I suppose in decency I must call upon them?’
‘I suppose so.’
‘You may find them very agreeable.’
‘Oh yes.’
They conversed with their own thoughts for a while. Then Reardon burst out laughing.
‘Well, there’s the successful man, you see. Some day he’ll live in a mansion, and dictate literary opinions to the universe.’
‘How has he offended you?’
‘Offended me? Not at all. I am glad of his cheerful prospects.’