“I’m so happy you could join us, Mr. Tate.”
“You are?”
Uncle Mel was obviously astounded, and Emily’s tender heart squeezed for him. And for Will.
“Why, of course, I am. After all, you’re the only family my darling Will has, and I think it would be a shame if he had no family here today of all days.”
She gave Mel a smile so glorious it would have leveled a lesser man. He only gazed at her in blank astonishment for several seconds, overcome by her sweetness. Ultimately, Will had to jerk him out of his stupor.
“Well, come along, Uncle Mel. Come along and meet Emily’s family. And Thomas! Hell, you haven’t seen Thomas these last six years or more.”
Before Will could lead his uncle away, Emily tugged gently at his coat sleeve. When she had his attention, she gestured with her little chin towards Texas Lonesome, who was now propped under a spreading oak, sound asleep. Gustav had curled up at his side and snored peacefully. A rotund Helga had not yet finished with her inspection of the stranger. Her quivering snout now sniffed with grave suspicion at the poor man’s left boot.
“What do you suppose we should do with him, Will darling?”
Will took a look at the poor man under the tree and his conscience smote him mightily.
“Oh, Lord, Emily, I’m sorry. I meant to tell you weeks ago I wasn’t really Texas Lonesome, but I forgot. It’s just that I wanted to be with you so much, when you asked me if I was, I lied.” He gazed down into her sparkling blue eyes, as bright and beautiful as the summer sky, and asked meekly, “Can you ever forgive me?”
The only thing preventing Emily from melting into a puddle of love on the spot was her corset, which was laced up as tightly as her aunt Gertrude had been able to lace it. “Will, darling, of course I forgive you. What a sweet, wonderful little fib.”
A tear glistened on one perfect lash, and Will caught it with his finger.
“You mean it, Emily?” His heart was near to bursting with adoration.
“Of course, I mean it, Will.”
He hugged her close, defying proper etiquette entirely, and said, “Well, then, I opt for letting Texas Lonesome sleep it off and then giving him a big dinner and a bottle of champagne and our eternal thanks. If it weren’t for him, we wouldn’t be here now.”
Emily’s giggle was muffled in the layers of his gloriously white stock as he crushed her body to his.
“I’ll go with you to introduce your uncle to Gertrude and Ludwig, Will. Sometimes my relatives require a little explaining.”
The laugh with which Will greeted her words was music to her ears. “Your relatives need explaining? Lord above, Emily, darlin’, haven’t I told you enough about my Uncle Mel to cure you of any embarrassment about your kin yet?”
Emily took his arm in her two hands, wondering if she’d ever tire of the feel of him. She gave one last look to the slumbering Texas Lonesome before she and Will left to introduce their relatives.
“You know, Will darling, when he wrote to me, he said he didn’t drink overmuch. I wonder if he could possibly have been prevaricating.”
Thomas Crandall, watching Will and Emily skip hand in hand toward a table laden with enough food for three wedding parties, decided he had never seen a more perfectly matched pair in his entire life.
Historical Note
At the time this tale starts, 1895, Abe Warner’s Cobweb Palace was a drab remnant of its colorful self. Only popcorn and soda water were still served within its walls. It had in its prime, however, been much as described, with spider webs cascading from every surface and exotic animals in residence. It’s such a colorful piece of San Francisco, I couldn’t resist using it.
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