"I _am_ fond of them," she answered, "but they are not everything to me. They don't fill up my whole time and all my thoughts. They won't do instead of you." "No one suggested that, I think. Have you been for a drive to-day?" "No--I haven't." "What a funny woman you are, Mary! You might as well not have a motor for all the use you make of it." "I had nowhere to go." He looked at some invitation cards on the mantelpiece. "Oh, my dear, that's absolute nonsense. You mean you don't care to go anywhere. It _is_ extraordinary, how you drop people, Mary! When we first came to this house we had a lot of parties and things. Now you never seem to care for them." "It's quite true," she answered. "We did have parties and things. They made me miserable. I hated them." "Rather odd; aren't you?" "I hated them and loathed them," she continued. "For it only meant there were crowds of women who tried to flirt with you." "That's an _idee fixe_ of yours, my dear. Pure fancy, you know." "Well; all I know is I hated to see you talking to the women who came here. I tell you, quite frankly, _that's_ the reason why I've given up accepting invitations and giving them. Of course, if you _insist_, I will. I would do anything you told me." "Oh, good God, no! Let's cut out the parties, then. Don't have them for _me_! I thought it would be fun for you. ... What _do_ you do all day, Mary, if I may ask? You never seem to have any shopping--or hobbies--or anything that other women have to do." "I do the housekeeping in the morning," she said; "I see cook and look after everything to make things as _you_ like." "And I'm sure you do it very well indeed. But it doesn't take long; and after that----?" "I sit in that chair looking out of the window for you." He bit his lip impatiently, trying not to be irritable. "It's very nice of you, Mary, I'm sure. But I do wish you wouldn't!" "Why not? Don't you _like_ me to be waiting for you?" "No--I don't. I should like to think you were enjoying yourself; having a good time." "Well, I shouldn't do it if you took me out with you always." "My dear, I'm always delighted to take you with me, but I can't take you everywhere." "Where can't you take me?" "Well--to the club!" He smiled, and took up a newspaper. "I suppose you must go to your club sometimes," she said rather grudgingly. "But tell me, Nigel, would you like us to go in more for society again as we used at first?" He thought a moment. There were more quarrels when they saw more people--in fact, the fewer people they met the fewer subjects arose for scenes. "Well," he said, "suppose you give just one party this year. Just to 'keep our circle together,' as they say--then we can stop it again, if you like." "What sort of party?" "Any sort. Musical, if you like." "Oh! that means having horrid singers and players, and performers! I don't like that set, Nigel." "All right. Let's give a dance. We've got a splendid floor."