Well, he didn't go to Viola at all. He went first to the Thesigers at
Lancaster Gate. Then he came on to us.
That was all right. We had to arrange our dates to suit the General.
On the Sunday we dined at Lancaster Gate; Viola and Jevons were not there. Reggie had come up on the Friday for ten days, and he stayed with the General for the weekend.
He said he could stay with us for the whole week if we could have him.
We were out in the hall saying good-bye, and he was getting Norah's cloak for her. The hall was full of Thesigers and guests. I remember Norah saying, "We'd love to have you. But—we promised Vee-Vee to divide you with her."
And I remember seeing Reggie's face stiffen over the collar of the cloak as he held it. He said he didn't want to be divided.
It was so startling, she told me afterwards, that she lost her head. She said out loud, so that everybody heard her, "Not with Vee-Vee?" And everybody heard his answer:
"Not with Jevons."
Then he laughed.
In spite of the laugh Norah was quite frightened. She asked me, going home in the taxi, what I thought it meant. I said I thought it meant that Reggie didn't particularly care about meeting Jimmy. She said, "Well, he'll have to meet him to-morrow night. I'm jolly glad we've asked them."