She knew what I wanted immediately, and her eyes went wide, but she allowed me to guide her down onto her knees without missing a stroke. By now it was so dark that I could barely make out her face. She gave me two or three half-hearted rubs there, looking down as if surprised to see what her hand was doing, then tried to take it away, saying, “It’s getting cold,” as if it were time to start home. One thing more. I tucked them partly into my pocket before putting my arms around her waist. She certainly didn’t appear to be a particularly sexual person; in fact she seemed rather shy and virginal, in manner as well as dress, and I believe she was, basically. I couldn’t believe it. After a while I took her hand away from me. I took her face between my hands and kissed her, saying, “That feels nice.” I wanted to ask her if she liked what she was doing, but I was afraid of breaking the spell.
