midday
Not very long ago such a statement would have racked Christopher with jealous suspicions ; suspicious he was , and a little uneasy , but not to the point of mental torture . The letter in his pocket declared that he could never cease to love Polly , and that he groaned over the poverty which condemned him to idle hopes ; for all that , he thought much less of her just now than of the missing word . And when , in the luncheon hour , he posted his amorous missive , it was with almost a careless hand . On this same day it happened that Mr. Gammon , speeding about his business in Messrs. Quodlings ' neat little trap , found he could conveniently stop for a midday meal somewhere near Battersea Park Road . The boy who accompanied him took the horse to bait , and Mr. Gammon presently directed his steps to the little china shop . Mrs. Clover had just finished dinner ; her female assistant had returned into the shop , and by her Gammon sent a request for a moment 's private conversation . He soon entered the sitting-room .