"Oh, no!" Aunt Penny stared at the gentlemen who would soon be descending upon Faraday Hall.
"Look how many there are," said Charlotte, staring out the window. Far off in the distance she could see the line of carriages.
The three remained quiet for several moments.
"We were to leave for Town by week's end," Aunt Penny finally said. "But if all the eligible gentlemen are here-it is just as your aunt Mary had written to us"
"And we can see as much for ourselves," Muriel added.
"There is no need to travel to town, is there?" Aunt Penny said, sounding as if she were faced with a conundrum.
Charlotte could not believe her dream of going to London for the theater and parties, and visiting the infamous assembly rooms of Almack's, would be for naught. It appeared she was to remain in the country instead of partaking in the gaiety of the Season.
"If the eligibles are here, I wonder what types of males remain behind." Muriel mused aloud.
"Not anyone with whom we would care to rub elbowsyoung bloods, ne'er-do-wells, and wastrels who frequent clubs and have more interest in gambling than courting young ladies." Aunt Penny swept Charlotte's unbound hair behind her shoulders, indicating she had indeed referred to her niece.
"It is a shame they cannot stay here, as Augusta had her suitors attend our house party after the Season," said Charlotte, but she knew this was a suggestion that could not be realized.
"Only gentlemen?" Aunt Penny seemed to consider the notion, but it was obvious she did not like it. "Oh, no. We cannot have only gentlemen as guests. That would not be proper at all. They simply must remain where they are. There is nothing for it"
Aunt Penny sounded a bit worried, and more than a bit apprehensive. "I think I had best write your father. I realize he is occupied, with Parliament in session, but he might think it more important to return home to deal with family matters"
"What about having the gentlemen to supper?" Charlotte suggested, hoping for a more acceptable solution to their problem at hand.
"We still need to invite some women," Aunt Penny replied. "All the young ladies who are out are in Town. There are no eligible ladies remaining to invite for supper or for a ball, for that matter. This is all quite vexing."
"What if we had the gentlemen for tea?" Charlotte put forth.
"We certainly could manage that, don't you think? We could have Cook make some small cakes, tarts, biscuits, and assorted savories." Aunt Penny seemed agreeable to the notion. "That certainly sounds manageable."
"Especially if we reduce their number down to a half dozen or so," said Muriel. "I'm not yet sure how we are to accomplish such a feat" It appeared Muriel, whom Charlotte considered so very clever, was coming up with one of her ideas. "I own there must be a way. It would be better yet if it could be done where we need not do the pruning."
"Only six?" Aunt Penny sounded somewhat taken aback. "How can we possibly manage that?"
"I am not yet entirely sure. I shall first see to the simpler task of removing just one," she said, stepping away from the two and making her departure. "You may stand here and watch from the window, if that is what you like."
Charlotte did not exactly know what her sister would do but dreaded what would happen next. "We must stop her!" She made to dash out the door in pursuit, but Aunt Penny took hold of her arm.
"I think it best we allow Muriel to continue." Aunt Penny led Charlotte to the window for a view of the parterre below.
There must be a better, kinder way to discourage a man. Charlotte then remembered poor Lord Carlton who waited in the Grand Foyer.
"Oh, no. I'm sure Moo is going to be absolutely wretched to Lord Carlton and cause him to flee!"
Muriel descended the staircase to find Lord Carlton Wingate perched upon one of the many chairs in the Grand Foyer, waiting for Charlotte to appear.
He rose upon her arrival and bowed. "Good day to you, Lady Muriel."
"May I have a word with you, my lord?"
"Of course." He glanced about for Charlotte. Muriel decided she would keep it to herself that her sister would not be joining them.
"If you would please follow me." Muriel intended to lead him out of the house for, hopefully, the final time.
"I dare not leave," he insisted, refusing to step a foot away from his chair. "I await Lady Charlotte."
"That is exactly what I wish to speak to you about, my lord," Muriel confided to him. "She will not make an appearance for at least an hour."
A lackluster "Oh" was his reply. Clearly he did not like the news of another hour's wait. "Very well, then."
Muriel led the way down the corridor and out the side door to the parterre, where her sister and her aunt could watch the proceedings from Charlotte's bedchamber.
"I would like to come straight to the point if I might, my lord," Muriel began. "This may sound forward, but I need to know if you truly believe you have a chance to win my sister's affection."
"A chance?" He seemed surprised by her question. "Excuse me for sounding perhaps a bit confident regarding my station, but my father is the Marquess of Albany." He stood straighter and held his head higher with pride at the announcement.
"Yes, that's what I understand-a noble family," she agreed, and allowed a note of doubt to trickle into her voice. Lord Carlton had come from a fine family; there was no doubt about that.
"Yes, one of the noblest," he stated with pride.
"And you are a younger son-one of four, if I recalland the youngest. So there is really no chance of coming into your father's title, is there?" Muriel wrinkled her nose and smoothed her hair with two fingers. "Quite a shame, really."
Lord Carlton mumbled something. Muriel pretended not to hear his protest.
"Well, I must say there are all types of men Charlotte has to choose from. There are the rich"-she ticked off on her finger-"and then there are those who are extremely rich. Some of the gentlemen are handsome and some are prodigiously handsome, indeed." Muriel sighed, displaying a smile proving that she, too, had been captivated by the very same gentlemen. "Most of them are titled or will come into their family titles. There are not many younger sons, mind you, but they are all younger men."
Lord Carlton's hand-wringing did not go unnoticed. If Muriel was not mistaken, it seemed his face had grown a bit redder with mounting frustration regarding her observations of his competitors.
"I am not ... no, indeed, I am not all that old." His uncertainty and the strain he felt was evident, lacing through his tone. It sounded as if he did not even believe his own words.
"Of course not," Muriel cooed with a smile, doing her best to imitate Charlotte's agreeable manner, the one that seemed to please gentlemen. "If I am not mistaken, you were six and twenty when you courted my sister Augusta"
She looked at him for confirmation. He did not give it, but by his obvious omission, Muriel assumed she must have been right.
"That would make you now ... eight and twenty? Oh, dear, nearly thirty years of age. Really? Oh, that cannot be correct" Muriel glanced at him as if she simply could not believe she had calculated the sum properly. "Charlotte, who is eighteen years of age, will not mind a difference of a mere ten years," she said to reassure him, but not in a wholly confident tone.
"There are many marriages whose husbands and wives share such a discrepancy in age-more of an age difference, in fact," Lord Carlton stated with certainty. But something about him, the slight slouch of his shoulders, the crease between his brows, or the downturn of his mouth, conveyed that he felt more than a bit uneasy.
"Of course, you are correct," she quickly agreed, thinking of arranged marriages where the bride did not have a choice in whom they married. "I am sure that if Charlotte were truly in love with a gentleman, even if he were more than a decade older ... it would not matter to her in the least "
Muriel paused and narrowed her eyes to give the impression she was considering the matter-believed it, even. Her reaction did not seem to lend Lord Carlton comfort.
/> "As a young lady approaching a marriageable age myself," she muttered, as if allowing him to hear her innermost thoughts, "I believe it might be easier, on the whole, to fall in love with a younger man."
"But I am here now, young lady." The uncharacteristic sternness in his voice did not frighten Muriel. "And I wish to pay my addresses."
Muriel tilted her head and batted her lashes, as she had seen Charlotte do many times. "I do not think you dare suggest marriage to her, not without speaking to our father first. No, I cannot see it done."
Lord Carlton was beginning to quake, but still no crack in his already shaken self-confidence was in sight. She needed to continue a bit longer.
"It is true that you are the first to arrive and, perhaps, the first who wishes to make an offer but, sadly, I do not believe you are alone."
"What?" came his choked response. "I beg your pardon. I do not believe I-"
"There" Muriel pointed off into the distance, to his left. "Do you see? Charlotte's young men are coming to call."
Lord Carlton's eyes widened upon seeing the long line of carriages and men on horseback approaching Faraday Hall. An expression of horror washed across his blanching face.
"Oh, no" He clasped his hands together, pleading with her. "Please, you must allow me to see her, to speak to her. I must tell her-"
"I'm afraid that will not be possible." A twinge of guilt passed through Muriel. She really disliked having to resort to something so ... sinister, but this would be the best for Lord Carlton, really.
"I shan't have a chance with her ... not with those others paying her court" Lord Carlton Wingate dropped onto his knees before Muriel. It was not a romantic gesture but one that spoke of pure desperation. "I cannot see how I am to have a chance with her unless I am the first to tell her of my devotion and how much I adore her. I must convince her to become my wife before the others arrive."
From her bedchamber, Charlotte looked at the scene playing out below. "I do hope Moo is not being too harsh with him."
"I really should have been the one speaking to Lord Carlton," Aunt Penny confessed, not sounding particularly proud of herself.
"If Moo were here and you were there, she could tell me exactly what is transpiring," Charlotte noted.
"I am not always pleased when she eavesdrops," said Aunt Penny, keeping a firm hold on Charlotte's arm, "but there are times when her talent is quite valuable."
"But then, one need not know his exact words. It is quite apparent that he is in great distress." Charlotte could not help but empathize with him.
Lord Carlton knelt before Muriel, his fingers intertwined in a tight grip.
"Poor Lord Carlton." Charlotte's words were heartfelt. "He is not enjoying their tete-a-tete."
"But I can understand your sister's point in discouraging him." Aunt Penny must have felt sorry for him as well.
Muriel drew out linen from her sleeve and offered it to Lord Carlton. His chin dropped onto his chest, and it was quite clear that again he had broken down into tears, which seemed to be a common occurrence.
Aunt Penny remarked, "Honestly, the man really must learn to carry his own handkerchief."
Out of the corner of her eye, Charlotte spied Muriel and Aunt Penny standing at her window not long after Lord Carlton's departure. They seemed obsessed with the long line of travelers nearing the estate grounds.
"They came all this way to see me." Charlotte remarked, sitting at the dressing table while their abigail, Lydia, fussed over her toilette.
Charlotte had planned to wear a blue spencer over her lovely Vandyke-lace-embellished, petal-colored morning gown. Lydia insisted she make a special effort with her hair since more than a dozen callers would soon arrive.
All of them wished to catch her eye. How was that possible? The thought of so many gentlemen calling on her was nearly overwhelming; that she should disappoint any one of them caused her to fret. She must do something to ensure each one had an equal chance to have a word with her, to exchange glances or a smile.
"The least I can do is make time for them," Charlotte announced, coming to a decision.
"Well, of course you will, dear," Aunt Penny replied with no notion what Charlotte had in mind.
"I do wonder how the other gentlemen will tolerate such an arrangement," said Charlotte, sitting perfectly still, allowing Lydia to complete the final touches with the hot iron.
"What are you talking about, Char-Char?" Muriel stepped away from the window and stared at her sister.
"I wish to give each of the gentlemen who calls ten or so minutes of my undivided attention." Charlotte was completely serious. "Allow them some time when they do not need to compete with one another for my attention. It is the least I can do for them."
"It will require a good portion of your day if you were to allow each time of their own." Muriel must have quickly tallied the sum. "That will take hours!"
"I am well aware of that, Moo." Charlotte, who would not move from her decision, stared into the mirror at the reflection of her sister, standing behind her. "Do you not see that these gentlemen have given up their Season to come here? And I cannot possibly encourage all of them" Lydia stood by with the straw bonnet in her hand while Charlotte pulled on her pale lemon-colored kid gloves and announced, "It is something I must do"
The gentlemen reached Faraday Hall at approximately two o'clock in the afternoon. Huxley admitted them one after the other. Soon the Grand Foyer was brimming with suitors for Charlotte.
"This is ridiculous," Muriel complained to Aunt Penny, who had led Charlotte belowstairs to welcome her suitors, and then retreated up one floor to observe the entire mass. They stood at the railing on the first floor, looking down. "The whole lot of them will be smelling of April and May, including Char-Char."
"An entire houseful of men in love with Charlotte?" mused Aunt Penny, appearing light-headed at the thought. "I'm not sure exactly what we can do about it. We certainly cannot choose a husband for her."
"I suppose we must make the best of this situation." Muriel could not bear the thought of her sister choosing the wrong man.
"There are simply too many men," Aunt Penny said bluntly. "If we do not gain some semblance of order, there will soon be bedlam."
"Perhaps Char-Char's idea is a sound one, after all." Muriel knew she was not the only member of the family who could come up with resolutions to their problems.
Aunt Penny descended the stairs, stopping three steps from the ground floor, which put her a good head taller than the tallest man in attendance.
"Excuse me, gentlemen! Gentlemen, if I may have your attention." Aunt Penny waited until the crowd quieted before continuing. She held up a sheet of paper. "If you all will be so good as to add your name in the order in which you arrived, Lady Charlotte would like to stroll with you through the back gardens. Yes, that's right, sirs, each and every one of you, if you will all be so kind to wait your turn."
The gentlemen stepped toward her aunt, following her instructions, lining up to add their names to the list. Muriel noticed Charlotte's attention was sidetracked by local baronet Sir Nicholas Petersham, who took the opportunity to make introductions for two young men who had accompanied him.
"Lady Charlotte, may I present to you Lord Irving and Sir Hugh Linville?"
"How do you do? If you two gentlemen wish to add your names to the list my aunt presently amasses"Charlotte indicated behind her, off to her left-"over by the round table, I would gladly take a turn through our lovely family gardens with each of you as well."
"Yes, of course," Lord Irving agreed at the same time that Sir Hugh replied, "I shall gladly do so at once."
Charlotte graciously made her exit to collect her straw bonnet and confer with Aunt Penny.
"Did I or did I not say that Lady Charlotte was the loveliest creature upon this earth?" Sir Nicholas intoned. Clearly he had been talking up Charlotte's virtues to these two gentlemen.
Muriel waited for Sir Nicholas' payoff. It seemed to her he never appro
ached matters in a straightforward manner. For him there always seemed to be some wager involved.
"Yes, absolutely. Rightly so," declared Sir Hugh. Lord Irving stood there, remaining as silent as he had upon making Charlotte's acquaintance.
"Pay up, gents." Sir Nicholas held out his palm, into which they each slipped a coin.
Muriel huffed with indignation. Sir Nicholas Petersham was one of the most unscrupulous cads she could ever imagine. Then the notion came to her that he might prove useful.
Three and three-quarters of an hour later, Charlotte swept into the Citrus Parlor fatigued from her numerous turns about the grounds.
"Sukey, see our Char-Char has arrived," Muriel called out, rising from her chair.
"Char-Char, have you finished, finally?" Miss Susan Wilbanks leaped up to collect Charlotte's straw bonnet and lead the latecomer to her seat. Susan, the younger sister of Richard and Emily, grew up on the neighboring property, Yewhill Grange.
"Oh, do sit," said Muriel, quick to pour Charlotte a cup of tea. "Perhaps what you truly need is a bucket of warm water to soak your feet"
Charlotte eased into her chair and relaxed.
"Do not tell me you accompanied each and every one of those gentlemen through the rear gardens." Susan settled onto her seat next to Charlotte.
"Very well, I shan't say it if you do not wish to hear." Charlotte accepted the teacup from Muriel with a pleasant smile. "Thank you so much, Moo. I am certain this will make me feel just the thing."
"Is it true you are not going to Town? Not at all?" It seemed Susan could not make sense of what had happened that afternoon, nor of what changes were to be made because of it. "That is where your cousin Miriam found a husband, and he's an earl!"
"That is beside the point. There is no need for Char- Char to travel to London when all the men are here," Muriel told Susan, who was much closer to her age than Charlotte's.
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