I was struck all on a heap.
Cowardece is often just another name for being taken by surprise.
They jumped on us. They were the aggressor. They had us on our heels from the beginning.
Why the hell didn't I know about this?
On my face extended flat I was walloped with a cat For listening at the key-hole of the door.
I'm behind you." I spun to see Derek. "I can't win," he said. "You're as skittish as a kitten.
Funny how it kept hitting me, like each new thing was a surprise. When was I going to stop being surprised?
an expression of surprise falls from her face, though she's trying to keep it. it breaks off and she seems to catch it and fidget with it in her hands.
Even the good Homer is sometimes caught napping.
I'm sorry I stood there like a half-wit, Count Petroff," she told him matter-of-factly, "but I was a bit--surprised. After all, it's not everyday that I see a man who's prettier than I am." (Alexandra)
When I break into the clearing, she's on the ground, hopelessly entangled in a net. She just has the time to reach her hand through the mesh and say my name before the spear enters her body.
As sheepish as a fox captured by a fowl. [Fr., Honteux comme un renard qu'une poule aurait pris.]
I didn't even apply. There was no warning.
