four o'clock
Luncheon , in fact , must be over . And indeed , as he passed along the library windows , he saw Elizabeth 's figure at her desk . It annoyed him that she should have gone back to work so soon after her meal . He had constantly made it plain to her that she was not expected to begin work of an afternoon till four o'clock . She would overdo it : and then she would break down again as she had done before . In his selfishness , his growing dependence on her companionship and her help , he began to dread the mere chance . How agreeable , and how fruitful , their days of work had been lately !