three o'clock in the afternoon
She insisted on borrowing a larger table from the little fat woman next door , to hold the extra dishes . She dressed herself in her best . Her raven black hair was pressed smooth and shining down the sides of her pale temples . The work was completed by three o'clock in the afternoon , and Mary lay in her window lazily watching the crowds scurrying home . The offices closed early on Saturday afternoons . Ella was puttering about the room , adding little touches here and there in a pretense of still being busy . As a matter of fact , she was watching the girl from her one eye with a wistful tenderness she had not dared as yet to express in words .