“Every one was curious about you,” he told her. “People wondered about you. They knew a little about you, you see, and on that little they built all kinds of gossip....”
“And didn’t Mr. John ever explain how quiet and harmless his sitter was?” asked Pamela Star.
“John never speaks about his sitters. If you should ask him a question about them he wouldn’t hear you. John is an artist, not a table-decoration....”
“And what kind of things did people wonder about me?” asked Pamela Star. “I want to know, please. For, you see, I know as little about people as they know about me. Less even....”
“They wondered,” said Ivor, “if you really want to know, whether you were a courtesan or a virgin. And that’s a great compliment to you, Pamela Star, for there’s generally no doubt about it one way or the other....”
“And you?”
“Oh, I wondered too!”
“And now—are you still wondering?”
“More than ever,” he assured her.
“I’m not wondering,” he explained quickly, “whether you are a courtesan, for I think I know just enough about them to know that you’re not one. And you look too wise to be a virgin. I’m just wondering about you, that’s all.”