Page:Karl Gjellerup - Minna, A novel - 1913.djvu/95

 fellow with no devilry about me? And the little lobe of the ear in front, which was so rosy red, did it not say that it belonged to a woman who loved me just a little? Why then should not my heart jump for joy?

"Do tell me, are you as thirsty as I am?" Minna suddenly asked.

"That's a question I cannot answer, but I am very thirsty."

"Well, over there I see lots of bilberries, and I do not know why we should let them dry up and be of no use."

I was quite of her opinion, and we began to plunder the small bushes as quickly as we could. As it was too uncomfortable to stand for long in a bending position, we went down on our knees and crept from bush to bush on all-fours. Soon it became too much trouble to pluck off the berries one by one, so we tore off stalks and pulled them through our mouths, and in thus satisfying our thirst we for the first time realised how great it had been. Minna almost hugged herself, and even began to make a purring sound like a contented little animal. Seeing that this amused me, she carried the joke further, and snapped the berries from the bushes with her lips, not using her hands, which were spread out, like paws, upon the ground. Then she glanced up at me with a very humorous expression, at the same time purring and shaking her head, with some little curls dancing round her brow. Her lips were dark blue, and her smile showed a row of bluish teeth. Whether it was this rustic négligé which rendered her mouth less unapproachable than my respect had previously found it, or whether this colour, as a sign of our childish mood, aided my natural diffidence, I know not; but it is certain that it gave me an irresistible desire to kiss her. At this moment we both discovered a