THE BLACK PORSCHE Carrera rolled to a stop under a shade tree on Dumbarton Street. Clay got out and for a few seconds was able to ignore his newest toy, but after a quick glance in all directions he turned and admired it once again. His for three days now, and he still couldn't believe he owned it. Get used to it, he kept telling himself, and he could manage to act as though it were just another car, nothing special, but the sight of it after even a brief absence still made his pulse quicken. "I'm driving a Porsche," he would say to himself, out loud, as he buzzed through traffic like a Formula One driver.

He was eight blocks from the main campus of Georgetown University, the place he'd spent four years as a student before moving on to its law school near Capitol Hill. The town houses were historic and picturesque²; the small lawns manicured; the streets covered by ancient oaks and maples³. The busy shops and bars and restaurants on M Street were just two blocks to the south, easy walking distance. He had jogged these streets for four years, and he'd spent many long nights with his pals⁴ prowling the hangouts and pubs along Wisconsin Avenue and M Street.

Now he was about to live here.

The town house that held his attention was on the market for $1.3 million. He'd found it cruising through Georgetown two days earlier. There was another on N Street and another on Volta, all within a stone's throw of each other. He was determined⁵ to buy one before the end of the week.

The one on Dumbarton, his first choice, had been built in the 1850s and carefully preserved ever since. Its brick facade⁶ had been painted many times and was now a faded bluish color. Four levels, including a basement. The real estate agent said it had been immaculately maintained by a retired⁷ couple who had once entertained the Kennedys and the Kissingers and just fill in the blanks with all the other names one might want. Washington Realtors could drop names faster than those in Beverly Hills, especially when peddling

点击收听单词发音  

1 den
n.兽穴；秘密地方；安静的小房间，私室
参考例句：
There is a big fox den on the back hill.后山有一个很大的狐狸窝。 The only way to catch tiger cubs is to go into tiger's den.不入虎穴焉得虎子。

2 picturesque
adj.美丽如画的，（语言）生动的，绘声绘色的
参考例句：
You can see the picturesque shores beside the river.在河边你可以看到景色如画的两岸。 That was a picturesque phrase.那是一个形象化的说法。

3 maples
槭树，枫树( maple的名词复数 )； 槭木
参考例句：
There are many maples in the park. 公园里有好多枫树。 The wind of the autumn colour the maples carmine . 秋风给枫林涂抹胭红。

4 pals
n.朋友( pal的名词复数 )；老兄；小子；（对男子的不友好的称呼）家伙
参考例句：
We've been pals for years. 我们是多年的哥们儿了。 CD 8 positive cells remarkably increased in PALS and RP(P CD8+细胞在再生脾PALS和RP内均明显增加(P 来自互联网

5 determined
adj.坚定的；有决心的
参考例句：
I have determined on going to Tibet after graduation.我已决定毕业后去西藏。 He determined to view the rooms behind the office.他决定查看一下办公室后面的房间。

6 facade
n.(建筑物的)正面，临街正面；外表
参考例句：
The entrance facade consists of a large full height glass door.入口正面有一大型全高度玻璃门。 If you look carefully,you can see through Bob's facade.如果你仔细观察，你就能看穿鲍勃的外表。

7 retired
adj.隐退的，退休的，退役的
参考例句：
The old man retired to the country for rest.这位老人下乡休息去了。 Many retired people take up gardening as a hobby.许多退休的人都以从事园艺为嗜好。

8 peddling
忙于琐事的，无关紧要的
参考例句：
He worked as a door-to-door salesman peddling cloths and brushes. 他的工作是上门推销抹布和刷子。 "If he doesn't like peddling, why doesn't he practice law? "要是他不高兴卖柴火，干吗不当律师呢？

9 patio
n.庭院，平台
参考例句：
Suddenly, the thought of my beautiful patio came to mind. I can be quiet out there,I thought.我又忽然想到家里漂亮的院子，我能够在这里宁静地呆会。 They had a barbecue on their patio on Sunday.星期天他们在院子里进行烧烤。

10 decided
adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的
参考例句：
This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。 There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

11 bluff
v.虚张声势，用假象骗人；n.虚张声势，欺骗
参考例句：
His threats are merely bluff.他的威胁仅仅是虚张声势。 John is a deep card.No one can bluff him easily.约翰是个机灵鬼。谁也不容易欺骗他。

12 forth
adv.向前；向外，往外
参考例句：
The wind moved the trees gently back and forth.风吹得树轻轻地来回摇晃。 He gave forth a series of works in rapid succession.他很快连续发表了一系列的作品。

13 perfectly
adv.完美地，无可非议地，彻底地
参考例句：
The witnesses were each perfectly certain of what they said.证人们个个对自己所说的话十分肯定。 Everything that we're doing is all perfectly above board.我们做的每件事情都是光明正大的。

14 depreciate
v.降价，贬值，折旧
参考例句：
The computer value will depreciate by $ 500 in the first year.在头一年里这台电脑会贬值500美元。 If you neglect this property,it will depreciate.如果你忽视这份资产，它无形中就贬值了。

15 scrambling
v.快速爬行( scramble的现在分词 )；攀登；争夺；（军事飞机）紧急起飞
参考例句：
Scrambling up her hair, she darted out of the house. 她匆忙扎起头发，冲出房去。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》 She is scrambling eggs. 她正在炒蛋。 来自《简明英汉词典》

16 killing
n.巨额利润；突然赚大钱，发大财
参考例句：
Investors are set to make a killing from the sell-off.投资者准备清仓以便大赚一笔。 Last week my brother made a killing on Wall Street.上个周我兄弟在华尔街赚了一大笔。

17 chronological
adj.按年月顺序排列的，年代学的
参考例句：
The paintings are exhibited in chronological sequence.这些画是按创作的时间顺序展出的。 Give me the dates in chronological order.把日期按年月顺序给我。

18 spotted
adj.有斑点的，斑纹的，弄污了的
参考例句：
The milkman selected the spotted cows,from among a herd of two hundred.牛奶商从一群200头牛中选出有斑点的牛。 Sam's shop stocks short spotted socks.山姆的商店屯积了有斑点的短袜。

19 bungalow
n.平房，周围有阳台的木造小平房
参考例句：
A bungalow does not have an upstairs.平房没有上层。 The old couple sold that large house and moved into a small bungalow.老两口卖掉了那幢大房子，搬进了小平房。

20 prospect
n.前景，前途；景色，视野
参考例句：
This state of things holds out a cheerful prospect.事态呈现出可喜的前景。 The prospect became more evident.前景变得更加明朗了。

21 casually
adv.漠不关心地，无动于衷地，不负责任地
参考例句：
She remarked casually that she was changing her job.她当时漫不经心地说要换工作。 I casually mentioned that I might be interested in working abroad.我不经意地提到我可能会对出国工作感兴趣。

22 briefcase
n.手提箱，公事皮包
参考例句：
He packed a briefcase with what might be required.他把所有可能需要的东西都装进公文包。 He requested the old man to look after the briefcase.他请求那位老人照看这个公事包。

23 drawn
v.拖，拉，拔出；adj.憔悴的，紧张的
参考例句：
All the characters in the story are drawn from life.故事中的所有人物都取材于生活。 Her gaze was drawn irresistibly to the scene outside.她的目光禁不住被外面的风景所吸引。

24 deflecting
（使）偏斜， （使）偏离， （使）转向( deflect的现在分词 )
参考例句：
A variety of mechanical surfaces have been employed for deflecting the exhaust jets of solid-propellant rockets. 人们已经用过各种类型的机械控制面来偏转固体推进剂火箭的排气流。 If she made a leading statement, he was expert deflecting her into more impersonal channels. 只要她一开口，他就会巧妙地把她的话题转到与个人无关的问题上去。

25 initially
adv.最初，开始
参考例句：
The ban was initially opposed by the US.这一禁令首先遭到美国的反对。 Feathers initially developed from insect scales.羽毛最初由昆虫的翅瓣演化而来。

26 hatred
n.憎恶，憎恨，仇恨
参考例句：
He looked at me with hatred in his eyes.他以憎恨的眼光望着我。 The old man was seized with burning hatred for the fascists.老人对法西斯主义者充满了仇恨。

27 numbing
adj.使麻木的，使失去感觉的v.使麻木，使麻痹( numb的现在分词 )
参考例句：
Watching television had a numbing effect on his mind. 看电视使他头脑麻木。 It was numbing work, requiring patience and dedication. 这是一种令人麻木的工作，需要有耐心和忘我精神。 来自辞典例句

28 profusely
ad.abundantly
参考例句：
We were sweating profusely from the exertion of moving the furniture. 我们搬动家具大费气力，累得大汗淋漓。 He had been working hard and was perspiring profusely. 他一直在努力干活，身上大汗淋漓的。

29 outrageous
adj.无理的，令人不能容忍的
参考例句：
Her outrageous behaviour at the party offended everyone.她在聚会上的无礼行为触怒了每一个人。 Charges for local telephone calls are particularly outrageous.本地电话资费贵得出奇。

30 promptly
adv.及时地，敏捷地
参考例句：
He paid the money back promptly.他立即还了钱。 She promptly seized the opportunity his absence gave her.她立即抓住了因他不在场给她创造的机会。

31 killer
n.杀人者，杀人犯，杀手，屠杀者
参考例句：
Heart attacks have become Britain's No.1 killer disease.心脏病已成为英国的头号致命疾病。 The bulk of the evidence points to him as her killer.大量证据证明是他杀死她的。

32 siblings
n.兄弟，姐妹( sibling的名词复数 )
参考例句：
A triplet sleeps amongst its two siblings. 一个三胞胎睡在其两个同胞之间。 来自《简明英汉词典》 She has no way of tracking the donor or her half-siblings down. 她没办法找到那个捐精者或她的兄弟姐妹。 来自时文部分

33 ghetto
n.少数民族聚居区，贫民区
参考例句：
Racism and crime still flourish in the ghetto.城市贫民区的种族主义和犯罪仍然十分猖獗。 I saw that achievement as a possible pattern for the entire ghetto.我把获得的成就看作整个黑人区可以仿效的榜样。

34 relentless
adj.残酷的，不留情的，无怜悯心的
参考例句：
The traffic noise is relentless.交通车辆的噪音一刻也不停止。 Their training has to be relentless.他们的训练必须是无情的。