human
This heat is exhausting you, my dear. You look fagged and worn.
gpt
Why not say hideous at once?
human
For two reasons, the first is that you are not looking or never could look hideous; the second that I am too old and too old-fashioned for the brutal frankness that seems so popular nowadays. After a moment he added quietly,
gpt
I leave that kind of downrightness to younger men--such as Oliver Wick.
human
Oliver Wick's manners are perfectly abominable, and they seem to get worse. The beautiful Miss Perkins does not appear to have a very good influence on him.
gpt
And yet, he said,
human
Oh, he's _always_ very much in love, she retorted, the edge in her voice sharpening.
gpt
Why, it is only nine months ago that he was making a perfect fool of himself about--about a friend of mine.
human
Yes, I gathered from something his mother said that the young lady with the floral name has not the advantage of being his first love. I suppose the girl--the other girl, he took a cigarette case from his pocket and lit a cigarette,
gpt
Oh, give me a cigarette. Care about him? I should think she didn't. He bored the life out of the poor girl with his scenes--and--and, she struck a match,
human
Dear me, I should have called him rather brown, commented Sir John mildly.
gpt
Quite a brown young man, I should have said.
human
Oh, yes, but he used to turn white, and all those hideous lines in his face used to look suddenly so sharp and--and so deep.
gpt
Very emotional he must be. You knew the young lady well, then?
human
Yes--yes, I did. She was a friend of mine. She has--she is in South America now.
gpt
I see. But we are digressing. What I started to say was that as you are looking so tired, and as it is so frightfully hot, and as my foot is going to make me pretty useless for a few days, suppose we go for a little motor tour?
human
Oh yes, let's. Couldn't we go to the sea, John, I--I think the sea up north somewhere would brace me--I mean all of us up and make us feel better.
gpt
Good! What do you think of Yorkshire, Whitby or Robinhood Bay? Could you start to-morrow?
human
We can get Caroline to go with us, the girl resumed, sitting down on the sofa and smoothing the shawl which she had spread over his bandaged foot.
gpt
Poor old Caroline, she never gets any pleasure, and she will love it.
human
I think perhaps you had better ring up Jackson (he gave the number)
gpt
Yes, that would be splendid. You can have mother's room, and Bob can sleep in--in the dressing-room. Shall I go and tell Caroline?
human
No, go and telephone. He repeated the number.
gpt
Better get Jackson at once. By the way, Miss Perkins' young man will be coming in this afternoon, won't he?
human
Yes, oh dear, I had forgotten. He and Jenny are coming to dinner. Paul has a lot of new Russian music----