'Not till Miss Mavis is tired of me.'
She said nothing to this and I made her walk again. For some minutes she remained silent; then, rather unexpectedly, she began: 'I've seen you talking to that lady who sits at our table—the one who has so many children.'
'Mrs. Peck? Oh yes, I have talked with her.'
'Do you know her very well?'
'Only as one knows people at sea. An acquaintance makes itself. It doesn't mean very much.'
'She doesn't speak to me—she might if she wanted.'
'That's just what she says of you—that you might speak to her.'
'Oh, if she's waiting for that——!' said my companion, with a laugh. Then she added—'She lives in our street, nearly opposite.'
'Precisely. That's the reason why she thinks you might speak; she has seen you so often and seems to know so much about you.'