“But your hand is burning. Well, I never,” and hers had escaped; “I must be going.”
“Could you pull the blind down and shut the window, the noise is so frightful?”
The blind ran down and he thought of how to detain her. The window shut and the world became muffled.
“Oh, and this lily here, could you move it?”
She tugged, but the stand that held it was heavy, and her breathing grew deeper at the effort.
“Let me help. There is nothing in the way, is there?”
“I can do it; don’t get up, Mr. Haye.”
But he was on his feet and groping about when he met her hand again, calm and a trifle moist, which took his and guided it. His other hand meeting her shoulder slid down the dress (through which her arm glowed) till his fingers caught on her elbow. How small it was, but it wriggled, and seized with a sudden despair he loosed it. Then, as he was groping forward again, the lily poked gently into his face, trying to tickle him, and shuddering, he pushed the thing away. He leant forward further to where he felt her presence and the stand. Her breath burned in his face for a moment and bathing in her nearness he leant further forward still, in the hopes of finding her, but she dropped his hand and it fell on the slick edges of the pot in which the lily grew. Despair was coming over him again, it was too awkward, this pursuit of her under a lily, when all at once her arm mysteriously came up over his mouth, glowing and cool at the same time, and the scent was immediately stronger, tangible almost, so that he wanted to bite it. But before he could do that her arm had glided away again and he gave it up, and was merely irritated when a stray bit of her hair tickled his right cheek, so different to the lily, as they were pushing the stand away. But when they had the thing moved and she was leading him back, he felt so glad at the touch of her presence that once again he could not bear the thought of her going.
“Don’t leave me. Sit here for a little, I am so continually alone.”
“I must go, really, I shall be late already. My brother’s come up for the day and I’m to meet him. Is there anything else you want?”