noon
And we 'll go to the nickel dance hall later . '' This was followed by a procession of cooks arriving in state in various motor cars and carrying covered trays and vacuum bottles and departing in high spirits at the early close of their day 's work . Then the procession of subdued husbands would follow , and conglomerate menus would be spread on a series of tea tables throughout the rooms , with Sezanne smoking her small amber-stemmed pipe and describing her sojourn in a Turkish harem while Gay picked minor chords on his ukulele . After a later diversion of nickel dance halls and slumming the young matrons would say good-bye , preparing to sleep until noon , quite convinced that any one would have called it a day . Such a party greeted Steve , with Gay showing plans for Beatrice 's secret room with a sliding panel -- clever idea , splendid when they would be playing hide and seek -- and the cooks en route with the kettles and bottles of wine and the husbands meekly arriving in sulky silence . A little before two in the morning Steve escorted Aunt Belle back to the Constantine house . Beatrice had started to go to bed , but thinking of something she wished to ask Steve she stationed herself in his room , some candy near at hand and Sezanne 's manuscript as solace until he should arrive .