"Oh, yes ... yes."
He kissed me then and said: "There is one thing. Tell no one of this. It is our secret."
"Why should I not tell? Martha will have to know."
"The servants? Oh, you may tell them you are going to be married. They are Maggie's servants, are they not? She is still away."
"She will get a letter to us, I am sure, when she plans to return. She promised to let me know when she was coming."
"Well, she is not here and there is no time to tell her. You will see her when she comes and by that time you and I will be married."
"Why must it be a secret?"
"I will tell you. It is only for a while. Charles Torrens asks it. He is doing this as a great favor to me. If it becomes known others will be asking for it. It is so easy to be married in his chapel by his priest."
"But he is allowing you this ... er ... privilege."
"Charles is a good friend of mine. I pleaded with him. I really did. I said I wanted a speedy marriage. I wanted no fuss. For me he is doing this favor."
"And so ... we shall be married next Saturday. I shall need a gown ... a wedding dress."
Martha had come in with the wine.
He gave her a very charming smile, and I saw that he had enchanted her. He put the glass to his lips as though he drank to her.
"Nectar," he said.
She bridled a little. " Tis a poor thing to what I'll warrant your lordship is accustomed."
"Would that I were accustomed to such a brew as this! It is indeed nectar, good lady. I swear I never tasted better in the whole of my life."
"You are teasing me, sir."
"I swear not."
She went out of the room, slightly pink of skin and with her eyes shining.
"You won her heart by praising her wine."
"An easy conquest," he said lightly. "Oh, my dearest Sarah, I long for Saturday. Promise, promise me you will be there."
"Of course."
"And you want this as much as I do? You will not run away from me again?"
"How could I run away from my husband? But I was saying that I should have had more time. I may not have a wedding dress that is suitable."
"Who cares for dresses? I shall not marry a dress. Oh, Sarah, are you as happy as I?"
"I do not know how happy you are, but if it is only one half of the happiness I feel it is a great deal."
"Sarah, my beloved Sarah! Together ... just a few more days. Now, let us plan. I shall come for you at six of the clock on Saturday. We shall go to Torrens's house in Knightsbridge. A little way out, but not too far. And then the ceremony. It will not be long, and I shall take you back to my lodgings and then we shall go away to the country ... where we can be alone for a while. London is not the best of places to be in at this time. What say you, Sarah? Are you as eager as I am?"
"I believe myself to be."
He would have taken me into his arms there and then, but I was aware of the close proximity of Martha and Rose. He might have charmed Martha with his compliments on her wine, but I could not imagine what she would have thought had she come in and found a man whom she had not seen until this day embracing me.
I warned him of this. I said: "This is a small house. The servants are our friends. There is little ceremony."
He nodded. "And you will tell them?"
"I must give them an explanation as to why I shall not be coming back here."
"Why not tell them now? Call them. Introduce me as your husband-to-be."
"I think that would be the best way of breaking the news."
I called them in.
They looked startled. "Martha, Rose," I said. "I have something to tell you. I am going to be married."
Martha gasped. "What ... ? You can't ..."
"She can," said Jack. "And I insist on it."
"I want to introduce Lord Rosslyn, who is to be my husband."
They both stared wide-eyed and, in Rose's case, open-mouthed.
"We have known each other for some time," I said. "I met Lord Rosslyn at the theater. The wedding is on Saturday."
I heard Martha murmur: "Lord have mercy on us."
Jack smiled on. "He has certainly had mercy on me. I am the happiest man alive."
"Who'd a thought it!" said Martha. "Sarah ... marrying Lord Rosslyn!"
"I think," said Jack, smiling at her, "this is an occasion when we might all drink to the happiness of the bride and groom. Do you have any more of that most excellent wine?"
"Well, my lord, bless you! I've got a dozen or more bottles stowed away in the cellar."
"Then to it," he said.
"Come on you. Rose, you give me a hand," said Martha.
He looked at me and smiled when they had gone.
"How was that?" he said.
I was laughing. "You managed them perfectly. Martha is ready to worship you from now on."
"And the little speechless one—what effect did it have on her?"
"She was too bewildered—as well as she might be—to take it all in, but she will think what Martha thinks. Martha will see to that, so you have made a double conquest in this house."
"And of all who live in it?" he asked.
"All," I assured him.
It was so wonderful and very amusing. Martha brought in the wine bottle and goblets which were lifted to our health and happiness. Martha declared afterwards that she had never known the like—and I am sure Rose agreed with her.
So, I was to marry Jack Adair on the following Saturday and the ceremony would take place in the home of a certain Charles Torrens in the village of Knightsbridge, just outside London.
It was an exciting week. I could not believe it was really happening. Jack called at the house several times and Martha could not contain her pleasure.
"To think of it," she said to me. "You ... marrying a lord. That's what comes of being on the stage. Actresses do marry into the aristocracy. And, bless me, he's a real charmer, that one. I could fancy him myself. Lord Rosslyn, eh? I expect he knows the King. Sarah, I reckon you'll go to court. Does he really know the King? You know what I mean ... talk to him, just as we're talking now?"
"I suppose so," I said. And I thought: How little I know about him. But that was not important. I was going to marry him and his life would be mine.
"There's only one thing that's missing," said Martha. "Mistress Maggie's not here. I reckon she'd be so pleased to see you well settled. I used to hear her and Mistress Kitty talking about it ... how they wanted the best for you. Well, wouldn't they like this Lord Rosslyn? You only have to look at him to see what he is. Some of them go round pretending. But you can see what he is ... the right article. It's in every bit of him. Oh yes, he's a real lord all right."
They wanted to know a great deal and sometimes I was rather disconcerted to find I could not answer the simplest of questions. I consoled myself that this would soon be remedied.
I had told them at the theater that I was leaving to go away, and I was glad that most people were too interested in their own affairs to want to probe too deeply into those of others. I would play for the last time on Friday and the next day ... well, I could hardly wait for it to come. I could not tell them at the theater that I was going to marry Lord Rosslyn since he had particularly asked that it should be kept secret, and to mention it there would, I was sure, arouse some interest.
It seemed a very long week. I made some preparation. I did get a new, rather simple, dress made in time. It had a bodice pointed at the front and rounded behind, a full skirt but slit down the front to show a petticoat of a lighter shade of blue than the dress, with silver thread making a finely traced pattern on it.