Marie, with all the girlish prettiness she had ever possessed, and with an added charm that was very elusive and hard to analyze, seemed to have lost all of her old animation.
Joe tried the weather, and the small gossip of the film world, and a judiciously expurgated sketch of his life since he had last seen her.
Marie answered him whenever his monologue required answer, but she was unresponsive, uninterested--bored.

Joe twisted his mustache, eyed her aslant and took the plunge.
"I guess joy-ridin' kinda calls up old times, ay ?" he began insidiously.
"Maybe I shouldn't have brought you out for a ride; maybe it brings back painful memories, as the song goes." "Oh, no," said Marie spiritlessly.

"I don't see why it should." "No?
Well, that's good to hear you say so, girlie.

I was kinda afraid maybe trouble had hit you hard.

A sensitive, big-hearted little person like you.