Later, Clare introduces herself to Irene and the two women talk. The narrator recounts their conversation, "And so for an hour or more they had sat there smoking and drinking tea and filling in the gap of twelve years with talk. That is, Irene did. She told Clare about her marriage and removal to New York, about her husband, and about her two sons" (Larsen, 31). In conversation with Clare, Irene describes her family as she describes her recent life to Clare. Clare, however, does not talk much at all about her life, implying that Irene dominated the conversation. This moment further the fact that Irene has a strong, perhaps unhealthy, focus on her motherhood and family.