Perfectly Flawed (19 page)

Muriel glared back. Was he taking responsibility for
Charlotte's rash action?

"I imagine if it were up to you, I would have never
discovered it. "

"Me?" Muriel had done what she could to keep them
apart, though she was not yet ready to admit it.

"I have come to realize that you are her true protector, not her father, His Grace, nor her aunt, Mrs. Parker."

"I am only a girl, a child of fifteen."

He chuckled. "You may be only fifteen, but you are
not a child. You are an imp, a most precocious imp, if I
am not mistaken. I do not underestimate your influence
upon your sister, nor your ability to outmaneuver any
person you choose."

Muriel shrugged. "You give me far too much credit,
sir."

"I do not believe I do," Sir Philip stated with certainty. "Even with my practiced sensibilities and mastery
of decorum, I can restrain myself no longer. You, my
girl"-he glared at her-"are a meddling bluestocking!"

"Meddling?" Muriel gasped. Indeed, she had been.
"Well, you, sir, are a pompous prig!"

"I beg your pardon!" he said, enunciating every word
and finishing with a slight widening of his eyes. "You
mistake my concerted effort to accomplish the deeds I
consider important. Whereas, I'm sure, you come by
your talent naturally."

And he was correct. Muriel had to admit that she did
not hold the same opinion of him as she had the day
before or that very afternoon, for that matter. Still, he
could be unpleasant. "You behave as if you are far superior to any of Charlotte's men."

"I am not better than any other gentleman," Sir Philip
replied with all the arrogance Muriel had expected. "I
simply dress better."

Her eyelids slid closed and she could not prevent herself from thinking him dreadful.

"We do not have time for further discussion your
sister awaits her future husband and the gentlemen grow
closer to Faraday Hall. I cannot allow them to find herI adore her." He laid his hand upon his heart and spoke
with sincerity. "Yes, she is beautiful, but that is not what
compels me to seek her. It is her irresistible inner beauty."

Muriel had done what she could to prevent the baronet from discovering Charlotte's good qualities for
himself. As it turned out, it seemed that nothing would
discourage him.

"She had more than enough suitors from which to
choose," he continued. "Any one of them would have
been a suitable, no, an adequate match. Yet she does not
choose among them. She does not wish to marry merely
a handsome, nor a wealthy, titled peer. Lady Charlotte
wishes for much, much more. Someone who would love
her for herself."

No one had told Sir Philip of their strategy. How
could he have discovered it on his own?

"So you came up with a plan to test them. Rumors of
a glass eye, deafness, and a wooden leg then circulated
through the ranks. Your doing, I suspect" Sir Philip nodded in her direction, acknowledging her involvement.

Muriel hated to admit he was correct, but she had
not thought up all Charlotte's flaws. How could he have
known?

"The truth?" he mused, taking in a breath and narrowing his eyes. "Dear, sweet Charlotte is too kindhearted and considerate of their feelings. She cannot bear to
turn any of them away. I believe she cannot be truly
happy with anyone who remains. I expect you already
know that as well."

"You are impertinent, sir." Muriel could not take all
the credit or blame. "How do you know the rumors are
not true?"

"Oh, come now." He chuckled. "I am not like the young
pups who have lost their ability to think, as have the bulk
of Lady Charlotte's suitors. Despite her obvious beauty,
she has the rare ability to see the goodness in anyone and
is in possession of a compassionate soul. Those are qualities, I must confess, I find compelling." Sir Philip rubbed
his eyes and his gaze dropped to Muriel.

She strongly suspected Sir Philip's affection for Charlotte. Muriel simply had not wished to acknowledge it
existed. She also knew of Charlotte's certainty that he
was the man she truly loved.

"And I think she has the most wonderful sisterdevoted, protective, if not a bit sinister. You were trying
to save her from me, weren't you? No matter who among
the other suitors would be discouraged, or what small
lies needed fabricating."

"You are an out-and-out bounder. What you say is
pure conjecture."

There was no trace of laughter from Sir Philip now.
"You judged me by my exterior. It is the very same
egregious error those men made who wished Charlotte
for their own"

"They didn't love her," said Muriel. "When they dis covered she was not the perfection they believed, they
left" Muriel was right, about most of them, anyway. Yet
here was Sir Philip trying to convince her of his affection for Charlotte. "I do not understand why you bother
yourself by speaking to me. Shouldn't you beg for an
audience with my father?"

"Ah." Sir Philip raised his index finger, pausing for a
moment. "I may need his approval for marriage, but I
believe I need yours to be successful in my pursuit" He
turned to gaze at Muriel. "If I am the first to arrive, then,
by her own admission, it is me whom she must wed."

"In any case, I am not needed." Muriel conceded that
he was indeed very clever to puzzle their plan out.

"Could you, would you, come to my aid?" he pleaded.

"You want me to help you cheat?" She narrowed her
eyes. He was asking the impossible. "Why should I do
such a thing?"

"Without your guidance, I would certainly be lost in
the maze. Unless I am fortunate enough to stumble upon
the center-and this is far too important to leave to
chance."

This man stood tall, and seemingly strong, but Muriel
knew if she refused to help him he would crumple before
her eyes. How fragile he seemed to her all of a sudden.

"I would cherish her always," he vowed in all sincerity. "Because I am not the man you thought I was, because I am the man who dearly loves your sister. Please
consider that my future, and your sister Charlotte's future, rests in your hands." Sir Philip's gaze did not waver
from Muriel.

The momentous weight of her sister's future happiness
sat heavily upon her. Muriel had not been prepared to
make this decision.

What was she to do? She did not have the luxury of
time for contemplation. She thought of Charlotte in the
center of the maze waiting for one of her suitors to arrive. Someone she promised to marry, someone she did
not completely love. And here stood Sir Philip. Had he
successfully convinced Muriel of his love for Charlotte?

Muriel collected paper and pencil and returned to the
table. She quickly sketched the route to the center of the
maze and handed it to him.

"I thank you," he murmured, accepting what amounted
to him as a treasure map. "One last thing. It would also
be of great value if you were to help divert the other
three."

"You must think me mad," Muriel whispered to him,
"for I certainly believe I am for coming to your aid."

"No, I think you love your sister, as do I." Sir Philip
gave her a reassuring smile and then left.

Muriel accompanied Sir Philip down the stairs to
the rear terrace, where they parted. With the map she
had drawn for him in hand, he continued toward the
maze.

With the directions, she guaranteed he would be
the first to find Charlotte and, no doubt, convince her
they should wed. Her fate was now out of Muriel's hands.
Charlotte would have her chance, if Sir Philip was the
man she wished for her husband.

She headed for the front drive, where visitors, if they
were to arrive, would first appear.

"Moo!" Susan called out to her from the shady north
side of the house.

Muriel dashed forward to meet her friend. "Has there
been any sign of the-"

Sir Samuel came pelting around the front corner of the
house and slid to an ungainly stop before them. "Three
riders on horseback, about three, perhaps four minutes
apart, approach as we speak."

Sir Philip had only just entered the maze. Muriel realized the gentlemen would need to be delayed. The three
moved to a position from which they could view the
riders.

"It's Sir Hugh Linville," Sir Samuel announced when
the first came into sight.

The trio moved back, so as not to be seen.

"He always was keen on arriving early," Muriel
mumbled.

"Shall we tell them there's been a mistake?" Sir Samuel
offered.

That might well have been a solution, but Muriel did
not think it quite right.

"No, we can't do that. Think of the scandal!" Susan
stared from Sir Samuel to Muriel with unease.

Yes, that was the problem-the potential for the
family's disgrace.

"I do not think we should prevent them from entering
the maze. But let us be clear on this"-Muriel met both
Susan's and Sir Samuel's gazes, making sure all three of
them were in perfect agreement-"we do not want any
of these gentlemen to succeed."

"But if you allow them to enter the maze, will they
not find the center eventually?" Sir Samuel appeared
puzzled.

"No, they will not," Susan assured him. "There is a
trick to finding the center, you see? Each of the entrances has their own way to-"

"We don't have time for explanations, Sukey." Muriel
turned to Sir Samuel. "Greet Sir Hugh, if you will, and see him to the Elephant entrance of the maze. It's past
the Giraffe, on the north side. You must convince him it
is the way to the center."

"It's not, correct?" Sir Samuel's gaze wandered to
Susan for an answer.

"Do not waste time," Muriel urged him. "Go!"

Sir Samuel acknowledged his instructions with a
nod and left. The scatter of gravel sounded with his
every step. He soon disappeared around the corner of the
manor.

A few moments later, he rounded the corner once
again, sliding to a stop before them to say, "Mr. Atwater
has just turned onto the drive." Away again he dashed,
returning to welcome Sir Hugh.

"Sukey, you must direct Mr. Atwater to the Camel
entrance and bid him good luck."

"Very well." Susan shared a very small devious smile
with her friend. Growing up with the sisters, Susan
knew exactly how the maze worked and would keep the
secret to herself.

"I will see Lord Stanton to the Giraffe entrance."
Muriel clasped Susan's hands and together they walked
toward the drive. "Do not fear, Sukey; everything will
work out as it should."

"I hope so," Susan replied with a tone filled with
hope. She glanced at Muriel before leaving her side to
greet Mr. Atwater.

Muriel stood alone, watching Lord Stanton's highspirited bay turn from the main road onto the drive.
While waiting for his arrival, fleeting thoughts of Sir Philip and the directions she'd given him through the
Lion opening occupied Muriel.

The easiest entrance, she thought. He would not need to
crawl through the hidden underground tunnel, find the
small passage only fit for children, or locate the impossibleto-find door that on occasion was overgrown and impassible.

In short, if the baronet had followed her instructions,
he should be arriving at the maze's center just about
now.

After passing the entrance, Philip made his way down
the manicured path, making the indicated turns until he
came to the supposed "hidden ladder." He pressed his
hand into the foliage wall, setting his boot on the lowest
rung. Then he went up.

Once he arrived on the other side, he consulted his
map again. The center of the maze, and Lady Charlotte, stood on the other side of his hedge wall. He
imagined her lovely smile and her wide, blue eyes staring at him.

He took a few moments to compose himself. In preparation to face her he adjusted his cuffs and plucked at
his cravat. Then he knocked off the stray bits of debris
from his buckskins and sleeves. Philip stepped out from
around the corner.

"Sir Philip!" Charlotte cried out in surprise and drew
back at his sudden appearance. "I thought you were ...
someone else."

"One of your many gentlemen suitors, perhaps?"

She need not make the confession regarding the letters she'd written, and answered him with a shy nod.

"I am sorry to disappoint you; it is only I." Philip performed a sedate bow, with a sweep of his right arm as
the only flourish.

Although his arrival had been unexpected, Charlotte
did not behave as if she were disappointed to see him. If
only she realized he was here because she had promised
to wed the first gentleman who found her and Philip
had hoped to claim that prize.

Not wishing to further frighten her, he politely inquired, "Would you mind if I remained until their arrival?"

"I welcome your company, sir. It is very thoughtful."
Releasing the fistfuls of material she clutched, Charlotte
smoothed her skirts. "I was under the impression you
were making preparations to leave us."