The Vaudeville Star (21 page)

“Well, if it was his doing, we have him to thank yet again. If he does attend, our tickets will sell like hotcakes.”

When Ford looked up again, Ruby’s table was empty. After ten minutes, Ford walked back to the hotel. As he turned into the hallway, he heard giggling followed by laughter. Bessie was curtsying to Ruby, and Ruby was doing the same.

“What are you two on about?” Ford asked in amusement.

Ruby turned to Ford and laughed. “Nothing.” Then sinking into a curtsy, she said, “Your Majesty.”

“Ahh. The king’s visit.”

“Yes!” Ruby said in a delighted voice. “Do you think we will be presented, Ford?”

“I don’t know the king, but from what I’ve read, he likes the theater very much. He always has since he was a young man.”

“But that doesn’t mean we will be presented,” Ruby rightfully surmised.

“He has an eye for the ladies. Especially lovely ones,” Ford said, giving each lady a look before he bowed low to them both.

“My lady,” he said softly as he bowed to them before he retired to his room.

* * *

R
uby was nibbling
on her thumbnail the morning of opening night as she looked out the window from her hotel room. Bessie had ventured downstairs for breakfast, but Ruby couldn’t eat a thing. She sat in her chemise, curled at the window, as she had done so many times in New York, watching the pedestrians pass by.

She could hardly believe that she had come so far in such a short amount of time. It almost didn’t seem possible. She had left Connecticut with no true understanding of life in New York. She knew what she wanted, but how many young people ventured to New York for the same thing and never achieved their dreams?

She didn’t consider herself any different than those who had failed. She had talent and beauty, but so did many others. She had succeeded because she had been in the right place and met Bessie, who had also seen something in her and had wanted to help. Now with King’s financing . . .

She let the thought drop and sighed heavily. She hadn’t seen him since their departure from the ocean liner, and she viewed that as a good thing. She didn’t want to focus on him, rather on her performance and what she wanted to accomplish.

She liked the camaraderie of the other troupe members. She felt a part of a family that she had never known before. She felt a sudden twinge of guilt. She had never written to her mother or sister since leaving Connecticut, and she wondered if they ever thought of her.

A knock sounded on the door, and Ford entered carrying a tray of coffee and toast. He kicked the door closed with his foot and moved forward into the room.

“Ford! I didn’t expect you!” she said, pulling on her dressing gown.

“I didn’t realize. I thought you would be dressed. I saw Bessie downstairs, and she said you were not hungry, so I brought you some coffee and toast.”

Ruby saw the little tray also held a red rose in a tiny vase. Ruby felt her heart race.

“That was kind of you. Let’s each have a cup,” she said, moving to the tray and pouring out the coffee.

Ford saw her hand trembling, and he stopped her. “I’ll do it.”

He finished pouring and handed her a cup.

“Don’t be nervous, Ruby. You’ve no need to be.”

“Don’t I? It’s London. Maybe they won’t like me. Maybe I’ll sing off-key. Maybe they’ll throw something at me.”

“And maybe they’ll love you,” he said quietly.

Ruby smiled. “Maybe.”

“Then stop all this nonsense. You’re a Southern girl. You’ve got grit. You’re strong.”

“Is that how you see me?” Ruby asked, smiling.

“Yes, ma’am.” He nodded.

Ruby laughed. “Then I guess I’m as ready as I’ll ever be.”

They finished their coffee, and Ford moved to leave but turned to her.

“About the king. The real king. Don’t worry about being presented to him or performing the curtsy wrong. Just smile and charm him like you do everyone else.”

Holding on to his hand, Ruby dipped into a delicate and elegant curtsy. When she rose, she met his eyes. “Your Majesty.”

“My lady,” he said in acknowledgment.

R
uby rubbed
her hands together as she watched the stagehands scurry about backstage. From her position near the curtain, she could peek out into the theater. The audience was filling up. It was an immense auditorium, and soon there would be several hundred people watching her sing. She shuddered with giddy anticipation.

Max came running backstage looking for Vernon, and soon the word spread. The theater was sold out, and it was standing room only, which meant that people who had not been able to purchase a seat would be standing in the back of the theater.

There were now over nine hundred people in the theater, all waiting to see the New York vaudeville troupe. Ruby felt a shiver of dread mixed with delight at the thought. She watched as Vern walked by her wearing full white and black evening clothes. He smiled at her absently while under his breath she could hear him muttering his opening lines.

“Ladies and gentlemen,” he said as he walked by her. “I would like to welcome you . . .”

Bessie joined her, looking lovely in her sparkling costume. “Don’t be nervous! I forbid it!”

Ruby laughed lightly, trying to hide her nervousness. “I am and I’m not.”

Bessie gave her a quick hug. “They will
love
you.”

She hurried away only to be replaced by Lee Chen in his traditional black robe. He bowed slightly to her and moved away as Ruby nibbled on her thumbnail as she looked out over the audience again. It was indeed a packed house. When a hush fell over the assembly, she wondered what had caused it.

Suddenly, in the balcony, she saw several people enter, and the orchestra struck up “God Save the King.” People in the audience sang along with them. She knew that Edward VII was a popular king. He had waited fifty-nine years to ascend to the throne after his mother, Queen Victoria, the longest wait in English history.

When the song ended, there was thunderous applause as the king gave a stately wave and took his seat. Vernon took center stage and waited for the curtains to open just as Ruby moved aside.

“Ladies and gentlemen,” Vernon began. “I would like to welcome you to the Matinee Theatre!”

Ruby closed her eyes and took in a deep breath as she heard Zeta introduced. A loud applause greeted her. She knew Zeta had performed in London several times, and she wondered if she would receive the same reaction.

She paced back and forth as each act was introduced, performed, and completed. She felt the tightness of her corset and the giddiness of being nervous, excited, and feeling a little sick all at the same time. She was next to perform, and she glanced about her. A stagehand was moving equipment, but other than that, she was alone.

Her first song, “Mighty Lak’ a Rose,” was her most comfortable, as she had been singing it for the New York audiences. She tugged at her off-the-shoulder sleeves and pressed down the front of dress. She peeked out from behind the curtain and saw the crush of people before her. Soon enough, she would be center stage. She closed her eyes.

She had to steady her nerves. This was exactly the same as New York. People had paid to see her perform, and she would sing and shine. The king of England and his entourage were watching, but so had many influential people in New York. She had performed for high-ranking officials and important businessmen. She had to be calm and collected. She had step out onto the stage and dazzle them.

“Another round of applause for Lee Chen!” Vernon said loudly to the audience.

When they quieted down, he spoke again, “It is my pleasure to introduce our newest member of the troupe. She hails from the state of Mississippi, so she is a true Southern belle. But that’s not all! She is a fine songbird, and we are happy to have her here with us tonight. Our ingenue, the lovely Miss Ruby Sutton!”

Applause erupted, and Ruby came onstage. She looked up to the right balcony and down into the audience, and when her eyes came upon those seated in the left balcony, she gave a small, elegant curtsy to the king just as the music began.

Ruby smiled as her song began. She moved across the stage effortlessly and tried to make eye contact when she could through the bright electric lights.

There was a stillness in the audience, and as she glided across the stage, she tried to remember everything Bessie had taught her and what she had done in New York. Straight posture, smile, and make a little turn. And suddenly the song was over.

Applause filled the theater with several “bravos” coming from the balcony, and when Ruby exited, she wondered if that had been the king.

When Vernon announced her the second time, it was a simpler introduction. “Allow me to introduce our Southern belle and songbird, Ruby.”

When Ruby stepped out onstage the second time, the applause was louder than it had been the first time. She realized that the audience had enjoyed her first performance, and they were rewarding her.

Ruby nodded to the orchestra conductor and began her second song, “All Things Love Thee, So Do I
.
” This was the song King had picked for her. It was not as well-known as her first song since it dated from the 1830s.

“Gentle waves upon the deep, Murmur soft when thou dost sleep, Little birds upon the tree,

Sing their sweetest songs for thee, their sweetest songs for thee.

Cooling gales with voices low, In the tree tops gently blow, When thou dost in slumbers lie,

All things love thee, so do I.”

When she finished, she made a small curtsy, and a single rose was thrown upon the stage at her feet. When she picked it up, she breathed in the scent, and the audience cheered. Bessie was backstage with her brother waiting for their introduction, and she grinned at Ruby.

“It seems you can do no wrong. They love you.”

Her final song had also been chosen by King, “Kiss Me Quick and Go Away.”
He had been certain that this flirty little song would do well with the men in the audience and that the jaunty tune would be the right note to end her performance on. The song moved quickly along and used the violin to evoke Southern charm.

“ . . . the more we whispered our love talking, The more we had to say. Kiss me quick and go, my honey! Kiss me quick and go, To cheat surprise and prying eyes, Why, kiss me quick and go.”

The audience erupted with laughter as Ruby skipped across the stage with a toss of her shoulders and wagged her finger at the young men who clapped and whistled at her. When the song was complete, several people were standing, and the applause was almost deafening.

She made a final curtsy before leaving the stage, just as Zeta was taking it for the final performance. As she moved backstage, she noticed a man dressed in crisp black-and-white formal evening wear speaking in hushed tones to Vernon. She didn’t know what to make of it, but soon enough she found out. Max was quietly knocking on all the dressing room doors to inform them that after the show they were to all gather onstage as the king would like to congratulate them personally.

Bessie came running into her dressing room just as Max was leaving. “Did you hear?” she asked, grabbing Ruby by the shoulders.

Ruby laughed. “Yes. Max just told me.”

“Can you believe it? Can you? Oh my God! Bessie Moore from Kansas is about to meet the king of England!” she said breathlessly.

“Well, Bessie Moore, you deserve it! I saw you out there tonight! You and Archie were amazing!”

“Thank you, dear Ruby,” Bessie said as she sat on a stool next to her. “But I think the amazing one was you. You had the audience in the palm of your hand. Even the stagehands were talking about you.”

“Is that significant?” Ruby asked.

“When a crusty stagehand who has seen and heard everything is talking about you? Yes. It’s significant.”

Ruby flashed a smile.

“Oh, Ruby. If only I had known when we first met outside the stage door what a lucky charm you were to become.” She leaned down and kissed Ruby’s cheek. “God bless you, Ruby.”

“How do I look? Good enough to meet a king?” she asked.

“Better!”

When the performance ended, the troupe gathered onstage and waited for the king to appear. Bessie clutched Ruby’s hand, and the two women grinned in the dark. The large curtains opened, and though a portion of the audience was leaving, a large amount of people remained behind as the king descended from the balcony with his entourage.

As he made his way to the stage, Ruby noted that he was wearing evening clothes like the rest of his group, but he was given deference by those around him. He was a big, barrel-chested man with a full beard and mustache, and he walked with a sure stride. There were several men in his party but also a woman dressed in a fine gown with ropes of pearls at her throat.

“Excellent performance!” the king boomed as he nodded to Vernon.

Moving down the line, the king greeted everyone and said something complimentary about each performance. When he reached Zeta, he smiled.

“Alice particularly enjoyed your performance. Did you not, my dear?” he said, turning to the woman in pearls.

“I did, sir. Very much so.”

Zeta, for once, seemed at a loss for words.

“I had the pleasure of seeing you perform years ago in London,” Alice Keppel, the king’s mistress, told her.

As the two women conversed, the king turned his attention to Ruby.

“My dear Miss Sutton.”

“Your Majesty,” Ruby replied, sinking into a low and graceful curtsy.

“I don’t think I’ve seen such an elegant curtsy in quite some time,” he said, smiling.

“I’m so glad you approve, sir. I practiced to get it just right.”

“You practiced?”

“Yes. When we were told you were coming, I wanted to make sure I did it correctly, sir.”

The king broke out into a loud laugh. “Talented, lovely, and forthright. What a combination!”

Ruby blushed.

“There is to be a ball tomorrow at Devonshire House. I would consider it an honor if you would come as my special guest, my dear,” he said quietly.

Ruby was stunned by the invitation. “Of course. I would be delighted. Thank you, Your Majesty.”

The king nodded at the group once more. “Splendid! Splendid! A welcome addition to London theater.”

As his entourage moved offstage, Ruby saw Alice Keppel glance at her before she turned away. Zeta had not heard the king’s invite to Ruby as she had been engrossed in her conversation with the king’s mistress.

“Did you hear that?” Zeta said to no one in particular. “She remembered me from my performance years ago. Ha!”

Ruby clutched Bessie’s hand and turned to her. “Did you hear?”

Bessie nodded, her eyes wide.

The king had invited her to a ball. The king! She shivered with excitement.

* * *

K
ing Parker paced
across the floor of his suite several times in irritation. He had been to see the troupe perform and had been pleased by everything he saw, including Ruby. She was becoming the star she was destined to be. But at the end of the night, he had returned to his town house after receiving an unsigned note that his presence was requested.

When he had entered his town house, he discovered Lourdes sitting in the parlor waiting for him. She had lied to get in, claiming she was Mrs. Parker from America.

“I don’t understand why you are angry,” Lourdes said, shaking her head.

“And I don’t understand why you are here, Lourdes. Last we spoke, I gave you the Manhattan town house as well as all the presents I had given you over the years and spoke of a clean break.”

“I know, but—”

“In return,” he continued, “I made it clear that I was going to marry again. A mistress is not something I want to bring into the new marriage.”

“I didn’t think—”

“Obviously,” he said, helping himself to a drink.

She stood and moved toward him. “I missed you. Is that so wrong?”

King swallowed the brandy and eyed her. “Lourdes, I know the break was not what you wanted, and I’m sorry for it. But it is what I want.”

He sat on the sofa.

“You’re still in mourning, King. You can’t do anything yet. Why not enjoy yourself in the meantime?” She moved to kneel between his legs.

“Hmmm.”

He watched as she unbuttoned his trousers. Everything she said was true. He might as well take advantage of Lourdes’s considerable skill while he waited for the mourning period to end. He threw his head back against the sofa and closed his eyes. There would be time enough to rid himself of Lourdes and marry Ruby. Yes. And Lourdes was skilled. Very skilled indeed.