登陆注册
26286500000088

第88章 CHAPTER XXVIII JOHN HAS HOPE OF LORNA(4)

Tears of sorrow and reproach were lurking in her soft dark eyes, until in fewest words I told her that my seeming negligence was nothing but my bitter loss and wretched absence far away; of which I had so vainly striven to give any tidings without danger to her.

When she heard all this, and saw what I had brought from London (which was nothing less than a ring of pearls with a sapphire in the midst of them, as pretty as could well be found), she let the gentle tears flow fast, and came and sat so close beside me, that Itrembled like a folded sheep at the bleating of her lamb. But recovering comfort quickly, without more ado, I raised her left hand and observed it with a nice regard, wondering at the small blue veins, and curves, and tapering whiteness, and the points it finished with. My wonder seemed to please her much, herself so well accustomed to it, and not fond of watching it.

And then, before she could say a word, or guess what Iwas up to, as quick as ever I turned hand in a bout of wrestling, on her finger was my ring--sapphire for the veins of blue, and pearls to match white fingers.

'Oh, you crafty Master Ridd!' said Lorna, looking up at me, and blushing now a far brighter blush than when she spoke of Charlie; 'I thought that you were much too ****** ever to do this sort of thing. No wonder you can catch the fish, as when first I saw you.'

'Have I caught you, little fish? Or must all my life be spent in hopeless angling for you?'

'Neither one nor the other, John! You have not caught me yet altogether, though I like you dearly John; and if you will only keep away, I shall like you more and more. As for hopeless angling, John--that all others shall have until I tell you otherwise.'

With the large tears in her eyes--tears which seemed to me to rise partly from her want to love me with the power of my love--she put her pure bright lips, half smiling, half prone to reply to tears, against my forehead lined with trouble, doubt, and eager longing.

And then she drew my ring from off that snowy twig her finger, and held it out to me; and then, seeing how my face was falling, thrice she touched it with her lips, and sweetly gave it back to me. 'John, I dare not take it now; else I should be cheating you. I will try to love you dearly, even as you deserve and wish. Keep it for me just till then. Something tells me I shall earn it in a very little time. Perhaps you will be sorry then, sorry when it is all too late, to be loved by such as I am.'

What could I do at her mournful tone, but kiss a thousand times the hand which she put up to warn me, and vow that I would rather die with one assurance of her love, than without it live for ever with all beside that the world could give? Upon this she looked so lovely, with her dark eyelashes trembling, and her soft eyes full of light, and the colour of clear sunrise mounting on her cheeks and brow, that I was forced to turn away, being overcome with beauty.

'Dearest darling, love of my life,' I whispered through her clouds of hair; 'how long must I wait to know, how long must I linger doubting whether you can ever stoop from your birth and wondrous beauty to a poor, coarse hind like me, an ignorant unlettered yeoman--'

'I will not have you revile yourself,' said Lorna, very tenderly--just as I had meant to make her. 'You are not rude and unlettered, John. You know a great deal more than I do; you have learned both Greek and Latin, as you told me long ago, and you have been at the very best school in the West of England. None of us but my grandfather, and the Counsellor (who is a great scholar), can compare with you in this. And though Ihave laughed at your manner of speech, I only laughed in fun, John; I never meant to vex you by it, nor knew that it had done so.'

'Naught you say can vex me, dear,' I answered, as she leaned towards me in her generous sorrow; 'unless you say "Begone, John Ridd; I love another more than you."'

'Then I shall never vex you, John. Never, I mean, by saying that. Now, John, if you please, be quiet--'

For I was carried away so much by hearing her calling me 'John' so often, and the music of her voice, and the way she bent toward me, and the shadow of soft weeping in the sunlight of her eyes, that some of my great hand was creeping in a manner not to be imagined, and far less explained, toward the lithesome, wholesome curving underneath her mantle-fold, and out of sight and harm, as I thought; not being her front waist. However, Iwas dashed with that, and pretended not to mean it;only to pluck some lady-fern, whose elegance did me no good.

'Now, John,' said Lorna, being so quick that not even a lover could cheat her, and observing my confusion more intently than she need have done. 'Master John Ridd, it is high time for you to go home to your mother. Ilove your mother very much from what you have told me about her, and I will not have her cheated.'

'If you truly love my mother,' said I, very craftily 'the only way to show it is by truly loving me.'

Upon that she laughed at me in the sweetest manner, and with such provoking ways, and such come-and-go of glances, and beginning of quick blushes, which she tried to laugh away, that I knew, as well as if she herself had told me, by some knowledge (void of reasoning, and the surer for it), I knew quite well, while all my heart was burning hot within me, and mine eyes were shy of hers, and her eyes were shy of mine;for certain and for ever this I knew--as in a glory--that Lorna Doone had now begun and would go on to love me.

同类推荐
  • 类边长安志

    类边长安志

    本书为公版书,为不受著作权法限制的作家、艺术家及其它人士发布的作品,供广大读者阅读交流。
  • 重令

    重令

    本书为公版书,为不受著作权法限制的作家、艺术家及其它人士发布的作品,供广大读者阅读交流。
  • A Modest Proposal

    A Modest Proposal

    本书为公版书,为不受著作权法限制的作家、艺术家及其它人士发布的作品,供广大读者阅读交流。
  • 大沩密印寺养拙明禅师语录

    大沩密印寺养拙明禅师语录

    本书为公版书,为不受著作权法限制的作家、艺术家及其它人士发布的作品,供广大读者阅读交流。
  • 观所缘论释

    观所缘论释

    本书为公版书,为不受著作权法限制的作家、艺术家及其它人士发布的作品,供广大读者阅读交流。
热门推荐
  • 你是我的遇见

    你是我的遇见

    偶然见到他的第一眼时,她第一次听到自己的心跳,以为这是她人生最美的遇见,于是这个情窦初开的乖乖女开始了默默的暗恋。终于鼓足勇气时,他却匆匆离开,杳无音讯。暗恋无疾而终。多年后,她遇见了另一个让自己心动的人,他说,你是我最美的遇见。这时,曾经的他却出现了,她也才得知,原来,曾经暗恋的何止她一人……
  • 吸血鬼大战丧尸

    吸血鬼大战丧尸

    一切都发生得太快,2012年12月21日,这个玛雅预言兑现。不知道从哪里忽然出现了大群的丧尸,仅仅3个月过后99%以上的人类被转化为丧尸,剩下人类四处逃亡几乎已经陷入绝望。但就在此时一个曾经被人类唾弃的种族忽然奋起反抗,他们保护了剩下的人类免受丧尸的攻击,将人类当作宝物一样保护起来。因为这个种族也是以人类为食,但他们要的不多,仅仅是血……在黑暗之日降临之后,吸血鬼们起初非常开心,曾经自己痛恨的人类终于要走向灭亡。但随着时间的推移他们渐渐的发现了一个非常严重的问题。如果人类灭亡,那么吸血鬼也将不复存在。对血的渴望让吸血鬼们拿起了武器反抗丧尸,保护剩下所有的人类。
  • 脑魔一号

    脑魔一号

    在小城的边缘,有一条奇怪的街,名曰“庙街”。庙街里有两条奇怪的规定,但凡是不遵守规定的来客,都会悄无声息地消失在世界上,连尸体也找不到。几个年轻人想解开庙街的秘密,却发现了庙街里住着一个可怕的生物。在这个生物的背后,是一个藏了二十几年的巨大阴谋。
  • 娶一送一:帝少追妻忙

    娶一送一:帝少追妻忙

    她当了他六年的小跟班,以为就算是块石头自己也能捂热,可他依旧流连于花丛。一次次的强颜欢笑,一次次在深夜痛哭不能自已,原来,原本火热的心也是会变冷的。她留书离开,他终于意识到她是他的不可或缺。于是,她躲,他追。不介意孤独,比爱你舒服。辗转多年,没了他的她成为了著名设计师,沈先生,合作愉快。她摘下墨镜,笑得自信张扬。他看着她身后精致的男孩,咬牙安琬,你够能耐!人言,她最成功的,莫过于把花花公子改造成了忠犬老公,她在他怀中,浅笑。
  • 亡曲

    亡曲

    这是一本好书,让你脑洞大开却猜不到最后的真相。我先为它代言……
  • 山海八荒录

    山海八荒录

    没落的蛮荒巫族,一名少年悄然继承了失传多年的祝由禁咒,入大晋世家,搅动八荒风云。扎个草人,咒死敌手,金蝉蜕壳,斩仙飞刀。佛道相争,世家暗斗,门派激战,各族称霸。(本书诗词皆为原创)文青版简介:生命如此孤独,而在如此孤独的路上,孤独的你我彼此交错。从此,一个人的脚步有了另一个人的声音。
  • 吻鱼

    吻鱼

    题记两个双鱼座的男女,在命运的安排下相识,展开了一段艰难曲折的感情纠葛。是上天捉弄,还是造化弄人,让这两条原本生活在不同海域的鱼相见。爱恨情仇,生死别离一幕幕的在这两个男女的身上上演着。一条是怀着深深忧郁的蓝色鱼,家庭的变故让她几乎失去了生活的信心,唯有时间才能抚平她心中淡淡的忧伤。被迫失去自己原本的梦想,孤独一人来到陌生的大城市,靠着自己的努力艰难打拼。另一条是个性特别,热情大胆的红色鱼,在他开心乐观的背后,隐藏着深深的痛苦,他是一个被死神牵绊的孩子,他永远不知道什么时候会再也看不到明天的太阳。为了逃避家里,他也只身来到了这个城市,来到了她的面前。这两条不同海域的鱼又会擦出怎样的火花呢?他们的爱情故事又将是怎样展开的呢?不要着急,故事即将拉开帷幕。
  • 何亦城

    何亦城

    他出生在繁华都市,家境显赫。他生活在普通县城,平平凡凡。他生活的安安稳稳,直到命运来打破平静,回归。眼前的一切让他目瞪口呆...............他的生活为什么会有这样的起伏?是拐卖?是父辈的商业纠纷?又或者是..................
  • 婚姻是爱情的坟墓

    婚姻是爱情的坟墓

    在一起七年,黎贞说:“瑞文,我们该结婚了吧!”一个女孩子提出这句话,证明有多爱他!但是他却冰冷的回答:“不!”于是在那一天,黎贞的心彻骨寒!但凝冰总有融化的一天!“瑞文,我希望死后有一座坟墓,我不想死无葬身之地!”黎贞歇斯底里的痛哭!
  • 让你的理想成为现实

    让你的理想成为现实

    理想是照亮我们前行的路灯,是激发我们奋发的动力。但是,光有理想肯定是不行的。《让你的理想成为现实》将通过无数生动的事例告诉你,如何才能将心中瑰丽的梦想变成活生生的现实。在书中,作者认为,理想变成现实,第一是要有好心,第二是要勤奋工作。