Is she bad ?" "'Bad' ?"--Chad echoed it, but without a shock.

"Is that what's implied-- ?" "When relations are good ?" Strether felt a little silly, and was even conscious of a foolish laugh, at having it imposed on him to have appeared to speak so.

What indeed was he talking about?
His stare had relaxed; he looked now all round him.

But something in him brought him back, though he still didn't know quite how to turn it.

The two or three ways he thought of, and one of them in particular, were, even with scruples dismissed, too ugly.