“Oh, you think it wouldn’t! Well, it might make a lot of difference to me—had you thought of that?”
“Why, of course, Addie, it would be unfortunate, deplorable; but there’s no reason for worrying about it. She was running from a man—the man happened to be Joe, my chauffeur.”
“Then it is a pretty business! How do you know that Joe didn’t come here to look for us?”
“Because Joe is not that sort of fellow. I know him well; he’s devoted to me.”
“He may have thought this was another; I don’t like it. I trusted you absolutely and you have made a clumsy mess of it. And besides, you had no business to do that—what you were doing—you took advantage of my kindness and sympathy.”
“For heaven’s sake, cheer up! If the girl hadn’t broken in here just at the wrong moment it would have been all right, wouldn’t it?”
He was laughing in an effort to blunt the edge of her displeasure, but his attitude accentuated her anger.
“No, it would not! It was wrong and wicked of you! But what have you done with Joe?”
“He’s going to run the machine home—all of us—including Miss Morley.”
“Just after you caught him pursuing a helpless girl through a snow-storm in a wild place in the country! Do you mean to say you haven’t discharged him? You have certainly lost your mind!”