Page 257 - sons-and-lovers

‘Why,’ he exclaimed gratefully, ‘have you waited for
me!’
She saw a deep shadow in his eyes.
‘What is it?’ she asked.
‘The spring broken here;’ and he showed her where his
umbrella was injured.
Instantly, with some shame, she knew he had not done
the damage himself, but that Geoffrey was responsible.
‘It is only an old umbrella, isn’t it?’ she asked.
She wondered why he, who did not usually trouble over
trifles, made such a mountain of this molehill.
‘But it was William’s an’ my mother can’t help but know,’
he said quietly, still patiently working at the umbrella.
The words went through Miriam like a blade. This, then,
was the confirmation of her vision of him! She looked at
him. But there was about him a certain reserve, and she
dared not comfort him, not even speak softly to him.
‘Come on,’ he said. ‘I can’t do it;’ and they went in silence
along the road.
That same evening they were walking along under the
trees by Nether Green. He was talking to her fretfully,
seemed to be struggling to convince himself.
‘You know,’ he said, with an effort, ‘if one person loves,
the other does.’
‘Ah!’ she answered. ‘Like mother said to me when I was
little, ‘Love begets love.’’
‘Yes, something like that, I think it MUST be.’
‘I hope so, because, if it were not, love might be a very
terrible thing,’ she said.

Sons and Lovers