Free Child Of Music by Mary Burchell

short ! But he should not get away with that so easily, Felicity decided suddenly.
    And when he returned a few minutes later and got back into the car, she said without preamble, And what about my prejudices now?'
    He started the car before he answered. Then he said, but not at all defensively, 'What do you mean by that?'
    'You know perfectly well what I mean.' She had forgotten for the moment that he had given her a wonderful evening and offered her a stimulating job. She only knew that he had rather mockingly put her in the wrong and that she had no intention of staying there. 'A little while ago,' she reminded him sweetly, 'you more or less accused me of allowing my prejudices to run away with me. Now you heard for yourself what Mrs. Emlyn said about Julia Morton.'
    'Yes, I heard.' His tone was not that of a man who felt in the wrong. 'She said, 'As you know, Miss Grainger, it's her aunt who upsets her—" or some such words. The "as you know" interested me. I take it that you and Mrs. Emlyn have had a satisfying talk about Mrs. Morton and that you have transferred your views to her. Gossip of that kind isn't advisable in a place like this. What I said about your prejudices was justified, I think.'
    Felicity gasped aloud.
    'I never exchanged a word about her with Mrs. Emlyn,' she exclaimed indignantly. 'I shouldn't dream of doing such a thing!'
    'Well, if not directly, then by way of Janet, who has been encouraged, I'm afraid, to—'
    'So Janet must be dragged into it too!' Felicity turned to him, her cheeks hot with indignation and her eyes bright. 'In fact, everyone must be guilty except Julia Morton. Who's being prejudiced now?'
    'Perhaps I am,' he admitted quite unperturbed. 'But where Julia is concerned you must allow me a little prejudice, I'm afraid. I am going to marry her. This is your house, isn't it?'
    'Y-yes,' said Felicity in a very small voice indeed. And then, as he came round to open the car door for her, she managed to get out a few more words. 'I'm — sorry, Mr. Tarkman. I couldn't know you were so personally involved.'
    'No, you couldn't know,' he agreed. 'But that's what I meant about not letting your prejudices run away with you. Expressed in your rather forceful way—' his smile softened that a little, but only a little - 'they can be quite formidable.'
    'I'm sorry,' she said again, and she looked as though all the joy and light had gone out of the evening.
    Perhaps he noted that and was sorry in his turn, because he said in a businesslike way, 'I'll phone Mrs. Bush in the morning and arrange for us all to discuss details of the Tarkman appointment. We're hoping to have you for two afternoons and at least one evening a week, if that's acceptable to you and her.'
    'Oh, it is! I mean it is to me,' she assured him fervently. Then, fearing that she might have sounded too slavishly glad to be back on friendly terms again, she managed to lighten her voice and say with a rueful smile, 'And please forgive my final gaffe and let me say again how much I have to thank you for a wonderful evening.'
    'It was quite an evening for me too, you know.' He held her hand for a moment and smiled down at her. 'Tonight you accepted a lift from me without reservations.'
    'Without reservations?' She looked puzzled.
    'Once,' he reminded her not very kindly, 'I heard you say that you'd rather go home on hands and knees than accept a lift from me. I feel I've made some progress.'
    Then he got back into the car and drove away, leaving Felicity feeling dismayed and charmed and indefinably excited all at once.
    As she let herself in, Mary called from her room, 'Come on in. I'm wide awake and want a blow-by- blow account.'
    She went into the room immediately and stood there smiling, ready to give a full account of her evening. But suddenly the priorities seemed to arrange themselves in strange order and, quite unbidden, the words which rose to her lips were, 'He's going to marry Julia Morton.'
    'Was that what he invited you there