‘You seem to see a good deal of Mrs. Willoughby?’

‘Yes, we generally pair off together.’

Fielding dropped plump among the coarse sensations of the ordinary human.  He wanted to kick Mallinson, and to kick him hard.  He saw with an anticipatory satisfaction the glasses flying off the supercilious gentleman’s nose, and felt the jar at the end of his boot as it dashed into the coat-tails.  The action would have been too noticeable, however, and he only said, ‘What a very bourgeois thing to do!’

Mallinson’s air of complacency vanished as he heard the offensive term levelled against himself.  He did not, however, on that account change his attitude towards Mrs. Willoughby.  Fielding found him at the house a few days later, and proceeded to sit him out.  The contest drove Fielding to the last pitch of exasperation, for, apart from the inherent humiliation of the proceeding, Mrs. Willoughby was directly encouraging Mallinson to stay.

Mallinson at last was suffered to leave, and Mrs. Willoughby, instead of resuming her seat, walked across to the window and scrutinised intently the passers-by.

‘That creature visits you pretty often, it appears,’ said Fielding.

‘Does he?’ she asked.  ’He comes to me for the sake of consolation, I suppose.’

’And makes love to you for the sake of contrast.  He tells me you generally pair off together when you meet.  Pair off!’ and he grimaced the phrase to show how little he minded it.  ’It’ll be “keeping company” next.’

Mrs. Willoughby gave a little quiet laugh.  Her back was towards him, so that he could not catch her expression, but she seemed to him culpably indifferent to the complexion which Mallinson had given to their friendship.

‘It’s rather funny,’ she said, ’though I can’t help feeling sorry for him.’

‘I saw that you were sorry for him,’ Fielding interrupted.

‘But he pretends,’ Mrs. Willoughby went on, ignoring the interruption with complete unconsciousness—­’he pretends to himself that I am Clarice.  He talks to me as if I were.  He called me “Clarice” the other day, and never noticed the mistake, and that’s not my name, is it?’ She turned to him quite seriously as she put the question.

‘No,’ replied Fielding, ‘your name’s Constance,’ and he dwelt upon the name for a second.

‘Yes—­Constance,’ said Mrs. Willoughby thoughtfully.  ’It sounds rather prim, don’t you think?’

‘Constance,’ Fielding repeated, weighing it deliberately.  ’Constance—­no, I rather like it.’

‘Clarice shortens it to Connie.’

‘Does she indeed?  Connie—­Constance.’  Fielding contrasted the two names, and again, ‘Constance—­Connie.’

Mrs. Willoughby’s mouth began to dimple at the corners.

‘Although one laughs,’ she proceeded, ’it’s really rather serious about Mr. Mallinson.  He told me once the colour of my eyes was—­’