 What was said to be concernig about the relationship between Shawn and Ross?
Shawn--"with his usual hushed delicacy of speech and manner"--inquires of the novelist whether he could possibly reveal what prompted the creation of such an exquisite work. Moreover, Mehta writes as Shawn's adoring acolyte, whereas Ross writes as his longtime adulterous lover. Just knowing that Mrs. Shawn is still alive adds a certain tension to reading much of what this Other Woman chooses to divulge. During a late-night editorial session, she says, Shawn blurted out his love. Thereafter, the couple set up housekeeping together in an apartment 20 blocks downtown from the Shawn residence on upper Fifth Avenue and stoically endured the sufferings of Shawn's wife, who did not want a divorce.
 They began their relationship as an affair.
 They began their relationship as an affair.  Their work suffered from their lack of concentration.  They seemed to proritize their romance rather than their work.  They argued often, publicly.