midnight
Only twenty-nine , he could still afford to spend a few years in search of living . His fortune left him at the death of his father was safely invested , and he had no close friends in the city and no relatives , except a cousin , John Cavendish , for whom he held no love , and little regard . He had almost determined upon going to Bear Creek to meet Westcott and was calling for his check when his attention was arrested by a noisy party of four that boisterously took seats at a near-by table . Cavendish recognised the two women as members of the chorus of the prevailing Revue , one of them Celeste La Rue , an aggressive blonde with thin lips and a metallic voice , whose name was synonymous with midnight escapades and flowing wine . His contemptuous smile at the sight of them deepened into a disgusted sneer when he saw that one of the men was John Cavendish , his cousin . The two men 's eyes met , and the younger , a slight , mild-eyed youth with a listless chin , excused himself and presented himself at the elder 's table . `` Wo n't you join us ? ''