Doris looked up at him with a sweetly acid smile which I should have thought would almost have made him tremble. No man in this world had ever thrown her over before, of that I am convinced. In matters of that sort, hitherto, all the bad conduct had come from her.
“Yet it would be quite easy to place an erroneous interpretation upon your words and your behaviour too, would it not, Mr Purchase, since you have already offered a seat in your box to me?”
“Not in set terms, Miss Doris.”
“No? I don’t quite know what you mean by set terms. On certain points you appear to have ideas of your own. One is thankful to be able to think that they are your own. Are we to take it that Norah proposes to divide herself into halves, and to share both your boxes?”
“Certainly not, Miss Doris. At present Mr Purchase hasn’t even got a box to share.”
This, of course, was Mr Carter.
“But I soon shall have. Miss Norah, I need hardly say, will occupy my box only.”
“Don’t talk nonsense, Jack. Before you invite a lady to share your box, I should make sure of having a box to which to invite her. I doubt if you’ll get one. My impression is that the house is sold right out.”
“I think not. I fancy that I know where to get a box if I want one badly. Is it impossible to induce you to see what a peculiar position you are taking up, Basil? Is it necessary to once more point out to you that the original invitation to Miss Norah came from me, and that in that matter you are really merely an interloper?”
“What rubbish that is, Jack.”