顺水推舟24

时间：2025-01-30 17:25:25

（单词翻译:单击）

Fourteen
“Oh, there you are, Lynn.” Adela’s voice was brisk and relieved. “I didn’t hear you come
in, darling. Have you been in long?”
“Oh, yes, ages. I was upstairs.”
“I wish you’d tell me when you come in, Lynn. I’m always nervous when you’re out
alone after dark.”
“Really, Mums, don’t you think I can look after myself?”
“Well, there have been dreadful things in the papers lately. All these discharged soldiers—they
attack girls.”
“I expect the girls ask for it.”
She smiled—rather a twisted smile.
Yes, girls did ask for danger…Who, after all, really wanted to be safe…?
“Lynn, darling, are you listening?”
Lynn brought her mind back with a jerk.
Her mother had been talking.
“What did you say, Mums?”
“I was talking about your bridesmaids, dear. I suppose they’ll be able to produce the coupons1
all right. It’s very lucky for you having all your demob ones. I’m really terribly sorry for girls
who get married nowadays on just their ordinary coupons. I mean they just can’t have anything
new at all. Not outside, I mean. What with the state all one’s undies are in nowadays one just has
to go for them. Yes, Lynn, you really are lucky.”
“Oh, very lucky.”
She was walking round the room—prowling, picking up things, putting them down.
“Must you be so terribly restless, dear? You make me feel quite jumpy!”
“Sorry, Mums.”
“There’s nothing the matter, is there?”
“What should be the matter?” asked Lynn sharply.
“Well, don’t jump down my throat, darling. Now about bridesmaids. I really think you ought
to ask the Macrae girl. Her mother was my closest friend, remember, and I do think she’ll be hurt
if—”
“I loathe2 Joan Macrae and always have.”
“I know, darling, but does that really matter? Marjorie will, I’m sure, feel hurt—”
“Really, Mums, it’s my wedding, isn’t it?”
“Yes, I know, Lynn, but—”
“If there is a wedding at all!”
She hadn’t meant to say that. The words slipped out without her having planned them. She
would have caught them back, but it was too late. Mrs. Marchmont was staring at her daughter in
alarm.
“Lynn, darling, what do you mean?”
“Oh, nothing, Mums.”
“You and Rowley haven’t quarrelled?”
“No, of course not. Don’t fuss, Mums, everything’s all right.”
But Adela was looking at her daughter in real alarm, sensitive to the turmoil3 behind Lynn’s
frowning exterior4.
“I’ve always felt you’d be so safe married to Rowley,” she said piteously.
“Who wants to be safe?” Lynn asked scornfully. She turned sharply. “Was that the
telephone?”
“No. Why? Are you expecting a call?”
Lynn shook her head. Humiliating to be waiting for the telephone to ring. He had said he would
ring her tonight. He must. “You’re mad,” she told herself. “Mad.”
Why did this man attract her so? The memory of his dark unhappy face rose up before her eyes.
She tried to banish5 it, tried to replace it by Rowley’s broad good-looking countenance6. His slow
smile, his affectionate glance. But did Rowley, she thought, really care about her? Surely if he’d
really cared, he’d have understood that day when she came to him and begged for five hundred
pounds. He’d have understood instead of being so maddeningly reasonable and matter-of-fact.
Marry Rowley, live on the farm, never go away again, never see foreign skies, smell exotic smells
—never again be free….
Sharply the telephone rang. Lynn took a deep breath, walked across the hall and picked up the
receiver.
With the shock of a blow, Aunt Kathie’s voice came thinly through the wire.
“Lynn? Is that you? Oh, I’m so glad. I’m afraid, you know, I’ve made rather a muddle—
about the meeting at the Institute—”
The thin fluttering voice went on. Lynn listened, interpolated comments, uttered reassurances7,
received thanks.
“Such a comfort, dear Lynn, you are always so kind and so practical. I really can’t imagine
how I get things so muddled8 up.”
Lynn couldn’t imagine either. Aunt Kathie’s capacity for muddling9 the simplest issues
amounted practically to genius.
“But I always do say,” finished Aunt Kathie, “that everything goes wrong at once. Our
telephone is out of order and I’ve had to go out to a call box, and now I’m here I hadn’t got
twopence, only halfpennies—and I had to go and ask—”
It petered out at last. Lynn hung up and went back to the drawing-room. Adela Marchmont,
alert, asked: “Was that—” and paused.
Lynn said quickly: “Aunt Kathie.”
“What did she want?”
“Oh, just one of her usual muddles10.”
Lynn sat down again with a book, glancing up at the clock. Yes—it had been too early. She
couldn’t expect her call yet. At five minutes past eleven the telephone rang again. She went
slowly out to it. This time she wouldn’t expect—it was probably Aunt Kathie again….
But no. “Warmsley Vale 34? Can Miss Lynn Marchmont take a personal call from London?”
Her heart missed a beat.
“This is Miss Lynn Marchmont speaking.”
“Hold on, please.”
She waited—confused noises—then silence. The telephone service was getting worse and
worse. She waited. Finally she depressed11 the receiver angrily. Another woman’s voice,
indifferent, cold, spoke12, was uninterested. “Hang up, please. You’ll be called later.”
She hung up, went back towards the drawing room, the bell rang again as she had her hand on
the door. She hurried back to the telephone.
“Hallo?”
A man’s voice said: “Warmsley Vale 34? Personal call from London for Miss Lynn
Marchmont.”
“Speaking.”
“Just a minute please.” Then, faintly, “Speak up, London, you’re through….”
And then, suddenly, David’s voice:
“Lynn, is that you?”
“David!”
“I had to speak to you.”
“Yes….”
“Look here, Lynn, I think I’d better clear out—”
“What do you mean?”
“Clear out of England altogether. Oh, it’s easy enough. I’ve pretended it wasn’t to
Rosaleen—simply because I didn’t want to leave Warmsley Vale. But what’s the good of it
all? You and I—it wouldn’t work. You’re a fine girl, Lynn—and as for me, I’m a bit of a
crook13, always have been. And don’t flatter yourself that I’d go straight for your sake. I might
mean to—but it wouldn’t work. No, you’d better marry the plodding14 Rowley. He’ll never
give you a day’s anxiety as long as you live. I should give you hell.”
She stood there, holding the receiver, saying nothing.
“Lynn, are you still there?”
“Yes, I’m here.”
“You didn’t say anything.”
“What is there to say?”
“Lynn?”
“Well…?”
Strange how clearly she could feel over all that distance, his excitement, the urgency of his
mood….
He cursed softly, said explosively, “Oh, to hell with everything!” and rang off.
Mrs. Marchmont, coming out of the drawing room, said, “Was that—?”
“A wrong number,” said Lynn and went quickly up the stairs.
 

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点击收听单词发音收听单词发音  

1 coupons 28882724d375042a7b19db1e976cb622     
n.礼券( coupon的名词复数 )；优惠券；订货单；参赛表
参考例句：
  • The company gives away free coupons for drinks or other items. 公司为饮料或其它项目发放免费赠券。 来自辞典例句
  • Do you have any coupons? 你们有优惠卡吗？ 来自英汉 - 翻译样例 - 口语
2 loathe 60jxB     
v.厌恶，嫌恶
参考例句：
  • I loathe the smell of burning rubber.我厌恶燃着的橡胶散发的气味。
  • You loathe the smell of greasy food when you are seasick.当你晕船时，你会厌恶油腻的气味。
3 turmoil CKJzj     
n.骚乱，混乱，动乱
参考例句：
  • His mind was in such a turmoil that he couldn't get to sleep.内心的纷扰使他无法入睡。
  • The robbery put the village in a turmoil.抢劫使全村陷入混乱。
4 exterior LlYyr     
adj.外部的，外在的；表面的
参考例句：
  • The seed has a hard exterior covering.这种子外壳很硬。
  • We are painting the exterior wall of the house.我们正在给房子的外墙涂漆。
5 banish nu8zD     
vt.放逐，驱逐；消除，排除
参考例句：
  • The doctor advised her to banish fear and anxiety.医生劝她消除恐惧和忧虑。
  • He tried to banish gloom from his thought.他试图驱除心中的忧愁。
6 countenance iztxc     
n.脸色，面容；面部表情；vt.支持，赞同
参考例句：
  • At the sight of this photograph he changed his countenance.他一看见这张照片脸色就变了。
  • I made a fierce countenance as if I would eat him alive.我脸色恶狠狠地，仿佛要把他活生生地吞下去。
7 reassurances dbcc40319f9da62b0b507bc61f8f35ac     
n.消除恐惧或疑虑( reassurance的名词复数 )；恢复信心；使人消除恐惧或疑虑的事物；使人恢复信心的事物
参考例句：
  • We have had some reassurances from the council that the building will be saved. 理事会保证会保留那座建筑，这使我们得到了些许安慰。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • Everybody's reassurances have encouraged me. 大家的勉励鼓舞了我。 来自辞典例句
8 muddled cb3d0169d47a84e95c0dfa5c4d744221     
adj.混乱的；糊涂的；头脑昏昏然的v.弄乱，弄糟( muddle的过去式)；使糊涂；对付，混日子
参考例句：
  • He gets muddled when the teacher starts shouting. 老师一喊叫他就心烦意乱。
  • I got muddled up and took the wrong turning. 我稀里糊涂地拐错了弯。 来自《简明英汉词典》
9 muddling dd2b136faac80aa1350cb5129e920f34     
v.弄乱，弄糟( muddle的现在分词 )；使糊涂；对付，混日子
参考例句：
  • Don't do that—you're muddling my papers. 别动—你会弄乱我的文件的。
  • In our company you see nobody muddling along. 在咱们公司，看不到混日子的人。 来自《简明英汉词典》
10 muddles 5016b2db86ad5279faf07c19b6318b49     
v.弄乱，弄糟( muddle的第三人称单数 )；使糊涂；对付，混日子
参考例句：
  • Translation muddles model concepts, which leads to destructive refactoring of code. 这些转换混淆了模型的概念，可能导致重构代码时的失败。 来自互联网
  • A glass of whisky soon muddles him. 一杯威士忌很快就会把他醉得迷迷糊糊。 来自互联网
11 depressed xu8zp9     
adj.沮丧的，抑郁的，不景气的，萧条的
参考例句：
  • When he was depressed,he felt utterly divorced from reality.他心情沮丧时就感到完全脱离了现实。
  • His mother was depressed by the sad news.这个坏消息使他的母亲意志消沉。
12 spoke XryyC     
n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说
参考例句：
  • They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
  • The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。
13 crook NnuyV     
v.使弯曲；n.小偷，骗子，贼；弯曲(处)
参考例句：
  • He demanded an apology from me for calling him a crook.我骂他骗子，他要我向他认错。
  • She was cradling a small parcel in the crook of her elbow.她用手臂挎着一个小包裹。
14 plodding 5lMz16     
a.proceeding in a slow or dull way
参考例句：
  • They're still plodding along with their investigation. 他们仍然在不厌其烦地进行调查。
  • He is plodding on with negotiations. 他正缓慢艰难地进行着谈判。

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