He didn’t break his gaze upon her when he opened his mouth and began to sing.
O my Luve's like a red, red rose
That's newly sprung in June:
O my Luve's like the melodie
That's sweetly played in tune.
Minnie, like most of the other patrons in the tavern, was spellbound, held in place by the sweet notes that wrapped around her, drawing her into him as though they were tendrils of silk whispering against her skin and pulling her close.
And I will come again, my Luve,
Though it were ten thousand mile.
The song came to a close, his fingers strumming on the last few chords, and while Minnie knew it was just a song — a love poem — it felt as though he meant every word.
The tavern went silent, everyone’s attention still hanging on that last note.
The slow clap began somewhere in the back, then began to grow with speed and intensity, until everyone was on theirfeet, clapping for Tommy and the emotion that had spread through the tavern.
Minnie found herself still in her seat, unable to move, until she realized that he was looking at her, an unspoken understanding passing between them. She slowly drew to her feet and began to clap along with the rest of the patrons.
Tommy made a sweeping bow, waved to the crowd, then surged down the stairs of the stage toward their table. He leaned over, reaching his hand out toward Minnie.
“Ready to leave, wife?” he asked, and she nodded mutely. At this point, she would follow him anywhere he asked.
She took his hand and nodded as they left the table. He reached the barmaid, about to pay, but she exchanged a glance with the man behind the bar and shook her head. “After that performance, it’s on us,” she said. “Enjoy your wedding night.”
Minnie wondered how she knew, but she supposed in a village this size, word spread quickly.
She gave Minnie a knowing smile, which Minnie tried her best to return, but it was hard when her heart was stampeding through her chest like a pack of horses.
“I think this is the way,” Tommy murmured as they walked through the dark street. “I’m a bit turned around,” he said, but soon enough the yellow house came into view, Murdoch’s sister awaiting them in the same parlor.
“I should have previously shown you the guest house, but now will do,” she said. “I’ll not bother you until morning, when we’ll have breakfast awaiting you. I assume you are here just for the night?”
“That’s right,” Tommy said as they walked into the yard behind and through the door of the small guest house beyond.
It was tiny, but the interior was everything they could have asked for. Warm. Clean. Inviting. Plush and comfortable, witha mountain of bedding and pillows, a vase of fresh flowers on the small dresser, and their bags sitting on the floor beside it.
“It’s beautiful,” Minnie said to Anne. “Thank you so much. For this. And for everything you have done for us.”
“Murdoch shared your story with me. The two of you deserve happiness,” Anne said with a smile before leaving them be, and suddenly the room seemed even smaller with just the two of them and the tension radiating between them.
“The garden looked nice,” Tommy finally said, though that didn’t negate the heaviness in the air. “I’ll wait out there while you prepare for bed.”
“Thank you,” she said, and when he stepped out the door, finally that pressure eased, although now Minnie found she missed his presence, that she had been finding solace just having him close to her.
She missedhim,even if it was just for a few minutes. Which was more surprising than anything else so far.
Tommy leaned his head back against the wood of the building behind him, taking deep breaths of the cool night air.
Minnie Draper was going to be the end of him. He was sure of it.
When he had sung to her, he had allowed every emotion that he felt for her to come through in his words, in the notes. The longing he felt when he looked at her. The wish that she would one day come to feel half as strongly for him as he did for her. The despair that all there might ever be between them was a marriage certificate and the name he had given her to keep her safe.
He knew she was worried he was getting nothing from this arrangement. But he could finally admit that the opportunity to spend his life close to her would be satisfaction enough.
