“May we come in?” Silas asked. “Unless you areresting.”
Emily’s back was to the door. Ruth, who was seated facing them, immediately responded with a smile. “Please do. It is always nice to be appreciated,” she said, coyly tilting her head and fluttering hereyes.
Mark introduced Silas and himself. Upon learning he was a duke, Teresa and Ruth perked up and gave Mark their fullattention.
Silas stepped forward and offered his hand to Emily. “Most stimulating performance. I especially liked the Mozart and theBeethoven.”
“Thank you,” Emily said. “The Mozart is a particular favorite ofmine.”
Silas surveyed the crowded room and extending his arms, asked, “Might we invite you ladies to accompany us to supper after theperformance?”
The sisters looked at eachother.
“If you have no other plans, that is,” Silasadded.
Mark could see there was some hesitation on their part and he said, “My grandmother, the Duchess of Edgerton, will also be accompanyingus.”
That seemed to relieve the sisters of their concerns of impropriety and theyassented.
“Excellent, then we shall call for you after the performance and we can go in our carriage—unless you have your own transportation,” Silasconfirmed.
“And my cello?” Ruth asked. “I must take that withme.”
“The carriage is sufficiently large,” Mark assuredthem.
As they briefly chatted, before the interval was over, Mark could not take his eyes off the beautiful Emily. She was so statuesque, poised, and restrained. She was like one of the classical Roman statues back at LinfieldHall.
Finally, Emily stood and politely addressed the two gentlemen. “You must excuse us; the interval is nearly over, and we need to compose ourselves for the next segment of theconcert.”
“Of course,” Mark said as he ushered Silas out of the dressing room ahead of him. As he was leaving, he took a last look at Emily. How extremely beautiful she was. But he felt a twinge of guilt as he compared Sophie to Emily and found she did notcompare.
As they headed toward their box, Silas said, “Now, that Miss Emily is certainly a great beauty. I should very much like to further my acquaintance withher.”
Mark led the way toward the box but Silas broke away. “I should like a quick glass of champagne before the interval is over. Can I get youanything?”
“Not for me. I shall wait untildinner.”
“Very well.” And Silas headed for thebar.
The second section of the concert was about to begin, just as Silas returned. As the applause for the returning artists fell away, Mark leaned over to his grandmother and said, “We invited the musicians to dine with us after theconcert.”
Grandmother gave him a stern look but did not respondotherwise.
When the concert came to a close, the audience lavished exuberant applause on the performers. After a number of curtain calls, the trio performed severalencores.
However, Mark could see that his grandmother was becoming restless and wanted to leave. When the final applause ended, Mark said to Silas, “Might you fetch the ladies while I escort Grandmamma to thecarriage?”
“Happy to,” Silas said flashing a largegrin.
“Did you enjoy the concert?” Mark asked as he led his grandmother out of thehall.
“It was passing fair,” she said. “I must say, the idea of female performers does upend convention, and I am not at all sure I like theidea.”
“I thought the pianist was brilliant and I have taken to the idea of seeing if I might be able to help her career,” Marksaid.
“And the other two ladies?” Grandmother asked as Mark helped her into thecarriage.
“That is the problem. They are nowhere as talented as Miss Emily. I do not feel inclined to see much of a future for them. But I do not know how Miss Emily might react to such anidea.”
