noon
he asked again , fixing his large dark eyes upon her with an expression of surprise , and waiting for some greeting . As she remained persistently silent , he exclaimed , still in the same attitude : `` I wish you a joyful morning , Xanthe . '' The young girl , without answering this greeting , gazed upward to the sky and sun as long as she could endure the light , but her lips quivered , and she flung the rose she held in her hand among its fellows in her lap . Phaon had followed the direction of her look , and again broke the silence , saying with a smile , no less quietly than before : `` Yes , indeed , the sun tells me I 've been sleeping here a long time ; it is almost noon . '' The youth 's composure aroused a storm of indignation in Xanthe 's breast . Her excitable blood fairly seethed , and she was obliged to put the utmost constraint upon herself not to throw her roses in his face . But she succeeded in curbing her wrath , and displaying intense eagerness , as she shaded her eyes with her hand and gazed toward some ships that appeared in view .