Steve walks the length of his room, regarding her sideways.
STEVE. ‘Look here, honestly I don’t know what you are talking about. You know, I could be angry with you, but I feel sure you are sincere.’
AMY. ‘Indeed I am.’
STEVE. ‘Well, then, I assure you on my word of honour that no lady was dining with me this evening, and that I have no wife.’
AMY, blankly, ‘No wife! You are sure? Oh, think.’
STEVE. ‘I swear it.’
AMY. ‘I am very sorry.’ She sinks dispiritedly into a chair.
STEVE. ‘Sorry I have no wife?’ She nods through her tears. ‘Don’t cry. How could my having a wife be a boon to you?’
AMY, plaintively, ‘It would have put you in the hollow of my hands.’
STEVE, idiotically, ‘And they are nice hands, too.’