"I have been here some time," she said. "I find it comfortable and quiet. Will you come in?"
He followed her. He noticed her room was furnished expensively and in excellent taste; there was nothing grand or gaudy about it.
"I am alone here, with my maid," she said. "They have an excellent system: all meals are prepared downstairs and sent up; there is a very good chef."
"The least possible trouble," he said. "How long have you been here?"
"Three years. It suits me; I do not care to be away from London. In my married days I lived in the country, but it bored me to death. Do you like the country?"
"Yes, I love it; but then much of my life has been spent in solitude."
"You have traveled?"
"Yes."
"I thought so."
"Why?"