been written in a moment of petulance?

He had not meant to think about her; he had vowed to put her out of his
thoughts for ever, to let her see that he would not wear the willow for
her; and yet--oh, they were all very well, these fine resolves, but
when a chap was utterly--confoundedly down and out----

He found himself shaking hands with Christine's mother.

"Jimmy hasn't had any lunch," Christine was saying. "So I asked him to
have some with us."

Her voice sounded very gay; the little flush had not died out of her
cheeks.

"I am very pleased you have come," said Christine's mother. She shook
hands with Jimmy, and smiled at him with her mother-eyes.

Jimmy wished they would not be so kind to him. It made him feel a
thousand times more miserable.

When he began to eat he was surprised to find that he was really
hungry. A glass of wine cheered him considerably; he began to talk and
make himself agreeable. As a matter of course, they talked about the
old days at Upton House; Jimmy began to remember things he had almost
forgotten; there had been an old stable-loft----

"Do you remember when you fell down the ladder?" Christine asked him
laughingly. "And the way you bumped your head----"