"Will he not remember and come back for it, anyhow?" suggested Mrs. Ramornie.
He shook his head.
"He has never spoken about it for a long while. I'm practically positive he has forgotten."
"But do you not need him at the office?" asked Mrs. Donaldson.
"Need him!"
"I can only tell you," she replied, "that Hector says he gets through business in a most surprising way, for all his eccentricity."
"Very surprising," he retorted sarcastically.
"Oh," she said airily, "I know you fancy yourself, but Hector declares father is the man for his money nowadays."
Andrew's cheeks drooped gloomily. He had heard hints of this preposterous opinion once or twice lately, and they disgusted his sense of fitness. How could a man possibly be good at business if he rushed through it like a steam-engine? Supposing one of the telegraph posts at the side wanted a touch of tar, how could you notice it going at that pace! But what was the use in arguing with a woman?
"Well, I can only tell you this," he snapped: "there's Madge Dunbar waiting for him here with her mouth open."