“Of course, one can't help liking her. But she says you have not met for two years or more.”
“No more we have.”
“Then I suppose you have seen more of her companion lately?”
“Well, if you must know, I never saw her before yesterday.”
“You don't mean to say that you took me in there tonight when you had never seen one of the young ladies before, and the other not for two years! Well, upon my word, Brown—”
“Now don't blow me up, old fellow, to-night—please don't. There, I give in. Don't hit a fellow when he's down. I'm so low.” Tom spoke in such a depreciating tone that Hardy's wrath passed away.
“Why, what's the matter?” he said. “You seemed to be full of talk. I was envying your fluency I know, often.”
“Talk! yes so I was. But didn't you see Dick in the Walk? You have never heard anything more?”
“No! but no news is good news.”
“Heigho! I'm awfully down. I want to talk to you. Let me come up.”