“Then you must obtain those. And I can help you with that, if you like. I have friends in the Foreign Office who can adviseme.”
“Yes, I would appreciate that.” Emily impulsively reached over and took Mark’s arm. “Oh, Mark, this is both exciting and frightening at the same time. I have been so used to my little family trio and the security of home and family, and now everything is about tochange.”
Mark laughed. “Indeed it shall. And I know it is what you want. Of course, there will be fears and apprehensions, but once you begin to practice and, as the tour looms, you will become excited and be ready to jump right intoit.
Emily became thoughtful. She felt a range of emotions surging through her, not the least of which was gratitude for the warmth and comfort that Mark provided her. How many men had she ever met who were as supportive and steady as he was? And not to forget—handsome.
Then she pulled herself together from her lapse into self-doubting and said, “Then let me jump into it right now. What is next and how can Ihelp?”
“I think I will firstly meet with Monsieur Bellieu and then we can see what he has to offer and go from there. Leave everything to me for the moment and I shall contact you when there is anything toreport.”
“And for my part I shall send you my proposed program of compositions and begin to work on them inearnest.”
“I am sure whoever finally organizes the tour will want to give input as to your repertoire, but there will be plenty of time to make adjustments before any tour getsunderway.”
“Thank you, Mark. Truly. And now I think I must get home to my family. They have gone through a lot today, and I should like to be there forthem.”
“Of course, and my carriage will take youhome.”
“Will you be coming withme?”
“No, I wish to spend some time with Alice. We shall have tea and plan a meeting withAndre.”
“Then, good day, dear friend,” shesaid.
Chapter 15
Even though Emily had made an engagement with Linton to go to dinner at a café, she had no idea what to wear. A café? Most likely it would be an informal place, but one never knew. Or was it a more upscale establishment? He had not given her the name or any hint as to what kind of place it was. Hopefully, it was not in some God forsaken area of London with no proper street lighting as they would most likely be taking publictransportation.
Teresa had been hovering all day, having been told of Emily’s dinner outing with Linton. It was so clear that poor Teresa was smitten by the young fellow, but he evidenced no interest in her other than as a fellow musician. That had given Emily thought. Perhaps she should take her sister in hand and see if she might sharpen her up somewhat. Teresa had unruly, dowdy hair and, with her owlish spectacles, she looked to be perpetually squinting at one as if she was about to ask you a profound question. And it would not hurt if she learned to apply a little rouge to her cheeks and lips. Their mother offered no help, so it appeared to be Emily’s lot to help her, as Ruth did not care one jot about Teresa’slooks.
But that project would need to wait, as it was Emily’s present task to get ready to go out with Linton this evening. As she swept through her wardrobe, she finally found a dress that was casual enough for a café, but formal enough for dinner if the establishment was moreupscale.
Once she was dressed and her hair prepared, she was ready and went down to the sitting room to await Linton’sarrival.
He showed up promptly and surprised her by having a hansom cab waiting at thecurb.
“What kind of music do they play where we are going?” Emily asked, as she settled back into the cab’sseat.
“It is mostly contemporary popular music. It features up and coming new singers and musicians. I hope you do not find the music to be beneath your standards,” he said as he gave her a playfulpoke.
“Not at all, I love all music. In fact, I have a particular affection for British folk music. I like the old songs and dances. And think of how many classical composers looked to their local popular and folk music for inspiration in theircompositions.”
“I thought you might saythat.”
“Obviously you like that music too, or you would not be taking me to thiscafé?”
“I do.” He gave her a slight smile, and before too long they had arrived. The café was in the West End and not at some remote corner of the city. In fact, it was a very attractive little establishment and the tables even hadtablecloths.
“I think you will like the food here, it is really quite marvelous. It is prepared by a family—including the grandmother, mother, father, and a daughter and a son. They take great pride in theirpreparations.”
Once seated at a corner table, they were presented withmenus.
“It does indeed look promising,” Emily commented. “Is there anything you particularlyrecommend?”
“It is all good, but I do love their stews. They go to great pains to cook them long and slow. The flavors meld and blend to create a succulentdelight.”
“My, you seem to know a lot aboutcooking.”
