When the coveted food at last arrived, Zoie had become completely
engrossed in the headgear of one of her neighbours, and it was
only after Jimmy had been induced to make himself ridiculous by
craning his neck to see things of no possible interest to him
that Zoie at last gave her attention to her plate.
In obeyance of Jimmy's order the waiter managed to rush the lunch
through within three- quarters of an hour; but when Jimmy and
Zoie at length rose to go he was so insanely irritated, that he
declared they had been in the place for hours; demanded that the
waiter hurry his bill; and then finally departed in high dudgeon
without leaving the customary "tip" behind him.
But all this was without its effect upon Zoie, who, a few moments
later rode away in her taxi, waving gaily to Jimmy who was now
late for business and thoroughly at odds with himself and the
world.
As a result of the time lost at luncheon Jimmy missed an
appointment that had to wait over until after office hours, and
as a result of this postponement, he missed Aggie, who went to a
friend's house for dinner, leaving word for him to follow. For
the first time in his life, Jimmy disobeyed Aggie's orders, and,
later on, when he "trundled off to bed" alone, he again recalled
that it was Zoie Hardy who was always causing hard feeling
between him and his spouse.
Some hours later, when Aggie reached home with misgivings because
Jimmy had not joined her, she was surprised to find him sleeping
as peacefully as a cherub.
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