Oh, Detective! I Hadn't Noticed You There. Please, Allow Me To Furtively Drop Something –

Oh, detective! I hadn’t noticed you there. But, on the other hand, there you undeniably are. Yes, of course I would be more than happy to abstractedly answer your question – Mm. Ah, don’t mind me, I just need to hastily stow this letter back in the pigeonhole before grinning broadly. What was that? Yes, yes, of course – here’s a minor detail about my schedule you’ll want to remember later.

Ah! I do hope you’ll forgive me for not explaining what I’ve just dropped into this desk drawer before locking it. Silly precaution to take, I know, but please do allow me to trail off instead of providing you with an explanation. May I offer you some light misdirection? No? Allow me to insist on it, then, until you have more than just a hunch to go on. Shall we take a turn about the garden? No? A glass of sherry in the library, then? How about a half a sandwich and a few puffs of a cigar in front of the docks? At the very least, allow me to hustle you into the nearest tea-room without ceremony before disappearing without taking leave of you.

Ha-ha! Perhaps some forced bonhomie will alleviate your concerns. You understand this sort of thing, don’t you detective? A day’s work is never done, and so on – so much to do, and so little to do it with – forced teaming – would you be so good as to answer a banal question at random while I finish removing these gloves and hoping you won’t notice?

Detective! What an unexpected, but by no means unwelcome visit! Though I am clearly unprepared to receive you, nothing could have made me happier than your unannounced arrival! I’ve just been finishing up a small errand that is directly at odds with what I’ve got in my hands here. Would you care to challenge that lie openly now, or wait until you’ve got something weightier? Ah, then perhaps you have time to join me for lunch. Oh, you’ve registered the obvious insincerity in my offer? So sorry. Another time perhaps. Hope to see you again soon!