Ubaldo's first season in Paris passed quickly. He quickly fell into a pattern with Carlotta where they would rehearse their roles together, either in an open rehearsal room at the opera house or (as Ubaldo preferred) at Carlotta's house. In between morning and afternoon rehearsals, they would go to a nearby café together for lunch, unless Carlotta was otherwise engaged. And on performance days, they would go out with a few patrons and other singers after the performance for dinner once in a while or he would simply escort her home.
His favourite times were the ones he spent alone with her. He learned that her parents had expected her to become a wife and mother and she rebelled, leaving home at age 16. He admired her courage at such a young age, going out on her own without money or even a place to live. He told her of his family, of his younger sister and her children, of growing up in Rome, his life in the opera there and then later in Milan. Of the pair, he'd had the easier life in opera – he'd simply paid his dues and risen the ranks. Carlotta, on the other hand, had to use all the connections and loves she had in order to get simple singing lessons, and then later, auditions and positions.
He'd had many chances to observe her with Comte Renard. It was he who had given her the final piece to her career – the audition that landed her the position of principal soprano. And he knew that, like many upper-class women, the Comtess Renard tolerated the singer's relationship with her husband. (After all, Carlotta had been there first, Ubaldo imagined Renard explaining to his wife.) But after observing Carlotta and Renard, he didn't see them behaving in a way that suggested the physical part of their relationship was still in tact.
In fact, Carlotta was beginning to make overtures to Ubaldo.
When Ubaldo had decided he would like to get to know Carlotta better, he had decided to play it safe and wait to see what Carlotta would do, and then use her actions as a basis for his own. The time at the café when they first met and she touched his hand was the first indication that there could be an attraction on her part, but he didn't know if it could simply be that she was the type of person who liked to touch people's hands to remain in physical contact during a conversation.
But the little signals he was getting started adding up. She'd take his arm when they walked, but didn't generally take any other man's arm. She would touch Ubaldo's hand during conversations, but not during conversations with anyone else. When Ubaldo would have difficulty with a phrase or note, she would stick up for him, saying the composer or conductor was being picky or flat-out wrong.
But what was probably the biggest sign was she had begun inviting him in to her home after rehearsals and performances. Ubaldo enjoyed these times with her, sitting near her, usually with a glass of wine, while they talked about the day's events or about nothing at all. Habitually, Carlotta would make some excuse and remove her shoes, curling her feet under her. It was here, without the pressures of being under the public eye and the pressures to have the perfect voice, the perfect visage, that she seemed truly relaxed. She smiled more, laughed more, and opened up more. She told him her hopes, her dreams and her fears.
Her fears, like any other singers, were of losing her voice. But the pressures on her were a bit greater. Newspapers had always went on about her golden, crystal throat. How her voice had never been known to be off key. How she could sing any part with equal technical perfection. Consequently, Carlotta was terrified of making one wrong move. She babied her voice to the point of being obsessive about the slightest draft or sniffle. Doctors knew to come rushing to her side at the slightest tickle.
But she knew the inevitable. One day, her voice would fail her. It would crack. Her range would dwindle. She would no longer be able to portray any role she wished. She would eventually be pushed out by a younger, more vocally proficient soprano and that would be it. Her career would be over. She would be forgotten, simply a memory. And then what? Oh, she could teach others to sing, but it would simply be an acknowledgement that she herself could no longer sing. She could marry, but by then, she would no longer be young…
Carlotta divulged all of this to Ubaldo one evening over a glass of wine after an especially trying rehearsal. He was surprised to have her confide such details to him, but pleased that she trusted him so. When she was done talking, tears running down her face, he'd simply wrapped his arms around her, promising that he'd protect her from the cruel world that they had been fated to work in. Her hands were folded in between both of them and Ubaldo soon felt them grabbing onto the buttons of his shirt, holding onto what felt like dear life (and grabbing some chest hairs at the same time). He held her tightly and rubbed her back until her tears subsided.
She pulled back and looked at him, her blue eyes meeting his. "What did I do to deserve someone so kind?" she asked him.
Ubaldo decided it was time to stop waiting for her to act. He leaned in and kissed her on the lips.