'No,but I will if I have to!'
“对,但如果不得已,我也许会的。”
'Would you liKe me to talk to him?Perhaps he'll listen to me.It's difficult for him—you're his only daughter,and he's probably very worried about it.'
“你想让我跟他谈谈吗?也许他会听我的。这对他来讲很困难——你是他唯一的女儿,他也许对此非常焦虑。”
'Oh,would you,Mary?Please.I want Dad to like Simon,really,but he's always nasty to him.'
“哦,你肯帮我吗?玛丽?求你了。我想让爸爸喜欢西蒙,真的,但他总是对他发火。”
'I'll do my best,my dear,but I don't know if it'll work.'
“亲爱的,我一定尽力,但我不知道是否有效。”
Mary did try,very hard,before she moved to Scotland for her new job.She spoke to John on the phone,and sometimes they had a cup of coffee together in town.She was surprised how carefully John listened to her,and how grateful he seemed for her help.He's really a very lonely man she thought. It must be hard for him with two children and no wife. He uesd to talk to his children a lot, but he doesn't now.
玛丽在去苏格兰就任新工作之前确实努力试过。她给约翰打电话,有时他们在镇上一起喝咖啡。她惊奇地发现约翰非常细心地听她讲,并且好像十分感激她的帮助。她想他的确是一个非常孤独的人,带着两个孩子,没有妻子,生活对他来说一定很艰难。他曾经经常跟他的孩子们交谈,但是现在不是这样了。
At last John agreed to the marriage. Mary was invited to a special supper because of the good news. Christine was very happy. She kissed Mary when she arrived, and gave her a small, secret present to thank her. It was a pair of pretty earrings. At the meal, John seemed a little nervous, but happy too. He tried hard to smile, and thanked Mary, although he didn’t think of giving her a present. He watched Christine all through the meal. He seemed to be afraid that he would never see her again, and he was very happy when she smiled at him.
最后约翰同意了婚事。由于这个好消息,玛丽被邀请参加了一个特殊的晚餐。克里斯汀非常高兴。当玛丽到达时,她亲吻了玛丽并给了她一件小巧秘密的礼物以表示感谢。它是一对漂亮的耳环。用餐时,约翰有点儿不自然,但也很高兴。他努力使自己笑出来,并感谢玛丽,虽然他没想到送她一件礼物。整个晚餐他都在观察克里斯汀。他好像害怕他再也见不到她了,当她冲他笑时,他感到很幸福。
Then Simon stood up to say something.
然后西蒙站起来讲话。