seven o'clock
`` I ? oh no . I never met anybody , '' I said , half-bitterly , beginning to be afraid of the people whom I so soon should meet ; and then I began to talk about the road , and to inquire how far we had yet to drive , and to ask to have a shawl about my shoulders . It was not yet seven o'clock , but the country air was fresh and cool , and the rapid driving made it cooler . `` We are almost there ; and I hope , Miss d'Estrée , that you wo n't feel as if you were going among strangers . You will not feel so long , at any rate . It is too bad Richard is n't here ; you know him so much better than the rest of us .