Page 229 - women-in-love
P. 229

on her face, that always came when she was in some false
         situation.
            Birkin was the good angel. He came smiling to them with
         his affected social grace, that somehow was never QUITE
         right. But he took off his hat and smiled at them with a real
         smile in his eyes, so that Brangwen cried out heartily in re-
         lief:
            ‘How do you do? You’re better, are you?’
            ‘Yes, I’m better. How do you do, Mrs Brangwen? I know
         Gudrun and Ursula very well.’
            His eyes smiled full of natural warmth. He had a soft,
         flattering  manner  with  women,  particularly  with  women
         who were not young.
            ‘Yes,’ said Mrs Brangwen, cool but yet gratified. ‘I have
         heard them speak of you often enough.’
            He laughed. Gudrun looked aside, feeling she was being
         belittled. People were standing about in groups, some wom-
         en were sitting in the shade of the walnut tree, with cups
         of tea in their hands, a waiter in evening dress was hurry-
         ing round, some girls were simpering with parasols, some
         young men, who had just come in from rowing, were sitting
         cross-legged on the grass, coatless, their shirt-sleeves rolled
         up in manly fashion, their hands resting on their white flan-
         nel trousers, their gaudy ties floating about, as they laughed
         and tried to be witty with the young damsels.
            ‘Why,’ thought Gudrun churlishly, ‘don’t they have the
         manners to put their coats on, and not to assume such inti-
         macy in their appearance.’
            She  abhorred  the  ordinary  young  man,  with  his  hair

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