Are you out with me ?" "Not a bit, old-timer.

But about this glove ?" "Oh, that's one of mine." She took it and slipped it into the bosom of her shirt--the calm blue eye of Pierre noted.
He said: "We'll eat and forget the rest of this, if you want, Jack." "And you ain't mad at me, Pierre ?" "Not a bit." There was just a trace of coldness in his tone, and she knew perfectly why it was there, but she chose to ascribe it to another cause.
She explained: "You see, a woman is just about nine tenths fool, Pierre, and has to bust out like that once in a while." "Oh!" said Pierre, and his eyes wandered past her as though he found food for thought on the wall.
She ventured cautiously, after seeing that he was eating with appetite: "How does the pin look ?" "Why, fine." And the silence began again.
She dared not question him in that mood, so she ventured again: "The old boy shooting left-handed--didn't he even fan the wind near you ?" "That was another bit of carelessness," said Pierre, but his smile held little of life.

"He might have known that if he _had_ shot close--by accident--I might have turned around and shot him dead--on purpose.

But when a man stops thinking for a minute, he's apt to go on for a long time making a fool of himself." "Right," she said, brightening as she felt the crisis pass away, "and that reminds me of a story about--" "By the way, Jack, I'll wager there's a more interesting story than that you could tell me." "What ?" "About how that glove happened to be on the floor." "Why, partner, it's just a glove of my own." "Didn't know you wore gloves with a leather as soft as that." "No?
Well, that story I was speaking about runs something like this--" And she told him a gay narrative, throwing all her spirit into it, for she was an admirable mimic.

He met her spirit more than half-way, laughing gaily; and so they reached the end of the story and the end of the meal at the same time.