midnight
Round at the garage were a number of cars from London , Manchester , and elsewhere , and I soon grew friendly with several expert chauffeurs , two of whom were old friends . One day Bindo and I had been to Harrogate , dined at the Majestic , and returned . After taking the car to the garage , I went out for a turn along the Esplanade , in order to stretch my legs . It was midnight , brightly starlit , and silent save for the low soughing of the waves upon the shore . I had lit my pipe and walked nearly to the Holbeck Gardens , at the extreme end of the South Cliff , when , in the darkness , I discerned two figures sitting upon a seat in the shadow . One was a man , and the other a woman in a light evening dress , with a wrap thrown over her head and shoulders . As I passed I managed to get a glimpse of their faces .