Page 257 - women-in-love

comprehension and pleasure.
‘But I’m very near,’ she said caressively, gaily.
‘Yet distant, distant,’ he said.
Again she was silent with pleasure, before she answered,
speaking with a reedy, thrilled voice:
‘Yet we cannot very well change, whilst we are on the
water.’ She caressed him subtly and strangely, having him
completely at her mercy.
A dozen or more boats on the lake swung their rosy and
moon-like lanterns low on the water, that reflected as from
a fire. In the distance, the steamer twanged and thrummed
and washed with her faintly-splashing paddles, trailing her
strings of coloured lights, and occasionally lighting up the
whole scene luridly with an effusion of fireworks, Roman
candles and sheafs of stars and other simple effects, illu-
minating the surface of the water, and showing the boats
creeping round, low down. Then the lovely darkness fell
again, the lanterns and the little threaded lights glimmered
softly, there was a muffled knocking of oars and a waving
of music.
Gudrun paddled almost imperceptibly. Gerald could
see, not far ahead, the rich blue and the rose globes of Ursu-
la’s lanterns swaying softly cheek to cheek as Birkin rowed,
and iridescent, evanescent gleams chasing in the wake. He
was aware, too, of his own delicately coloured lights casting
their softness behind him.
Gudrun rested her paddle and looked round. The canoe
lifted with the lightest ebbing of the water. Gerald’s white
knees were very near to her.

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