"Just a suggestion," said Bill. "Want to start now?"
"Come on."
We started on again down the Boulevard. A horse-cab passed us. Bill looked at it.
"See that horse-cab? Going to have that horse-cab stuffed for you for Christmas. Going to give all my friends stuffed animals. I'm a nature-writer."
A taxi passed, some one in it waved, then banged for the driver to stop. The taxi backed up to the curb. In it was Brett.
"Beautiful lady," said Bill. "Going to kidnap us."
"Hullo!" Brett said. "Hullo!"
"This is Bill Gorton. Lady Ashley."
Brett smiled at Bill. "I say I'm just back. Haven't bathed even. Michael comes in to-night."
"Good. Come on and eat with us, and we'll all go to meet him."
"Must clean myself."
"Oh, rot! Come on."
"Must bathe. He doesn't get in till nine."
"Come and have a drink, then, before you bathe."
"Might do that. Now you're not talking rot."
We got in the taxi. The driver looked around.
"Stop at the nearest bistro," I said.
"We might as well go to the Closerie," Brett said. "I can't drink these rotten brandies."
"Closerie des Lilas."
Brett turned to Bill.
"Have you been in this pestilential city long?"
"Just got in to-day from Budapest."
"How was Budapest?"
"Wonderful. Budapest was wonderful."
"Ask him about Vienna."
"Vienna," said Bill, "is a strange city."
