One o'clock
And beside this last fear , the idea of publicity , of ventilating the old scandal , thus damning him finally and hounding him out of his little practice , faded into inconsequence . The terrible thing was that for eighteen months he had carried this belief about her in his heart . She tried to divert her excited mind from the throng of suspicions and fears by preparing dinner . One o'clock came , then two , and Sommers did not arrive . Mrs. Ducharme might have waited for him at the entrance to the avenue , and he might have turned back to debate with himself what he should do . But she acquitted him of that cowardice . * * * * * As the afternoon wore on , her mind turned to the larger thoughts of their union .