"Of course you must meet him as you would any one else you know.
If you don't wish to speak to him, you need not do so. Saying
'Good-evening' costs nothing."

"If he takes me into dinner?" she asked calmly.

"Then you must talk to him as you would to any stranger," he said
impatiently. "Ask him if he has been to the opera, and he won't know
there is no opera going on. Tell him that town is very full, and he
won't know that everybody has left. Say you may meet him again at Mrs.
Kavanagh's, and you'll see that he doesn't know they mean to start for
the Tyrol in a fortnight. I think you and I must also be settling soon
where we mean to go. I don't think we could do better than go to the
Tyrol."

She did not answer. It was clear that he had given up all intention of
going up to Lewis, for that year at least. But she would not beg him
to alter his decision just yet. Mairi was coming, and that experiment
of the enchanted room had still to be tried.

As they drove round to Mrs. Kavanagh's house on that Tuesday evening,
she thought, with much bitterness of heart, of the possibility of her
having to meet Mr. Ingram in the fashion her husband had suggested.
Would it not be better, if he did take her in to dinner, to throw
herself entirely on his mercy, and ask him not to talk to her at all?
She would address herself, when there was a chance, to her neighbor on
the other side: if she remained silent altogether, no great harm would
be done.