A Tete-a-tete with the Couple:

A little less than a week later, Thomas and Cecilia were on their way to yet another unavoidable social affair. The difference with this one, however, was that it was quite safe; it was only a small, rather family oriented, garden party hosted by Percival and Miriam. And as the pair arrived arm in arm, Cecilia began to feel readjusted to society life.
      Miriam descended upon the couple almost the instant they walked through the door, unlaced their entwined arms, and inserted herself between them, exclaiming, "Thank goodness you two have arrived; Percy's been forcing the same joke on the guests for nearly two hours now, and I swear if I hear it once more, I might just lose my head!" she paused long enough to give a shuttering squeeze on both their arms. Turning to her left, she whispered, "Thomas, do be a dear and distract him, will you?"
      He hardly had time to nod his consent before the group reached Percival's band of gentlemen. Looking up, Percival said, "So, you've come at last. I was just telling Mr. Banks here the most capital story I heard in Town yesterday."
      With a glance from Miriam, Thomas interrupted with, "Come now, Percy, the poor fellow shan't want to hear it again. Besides, there are introductions to be made." Then, turning to the aforementioned Mr. Banks, Thomas introduced him to Cecilia. The small group conversed for a few minutes on minimal matters before their Mr. Banks excused himself to head to the refreshment table. Thomas turned to his brother and entreated him toward the library on the pretense of discussing a business matter.

      Percival objected with a teasing grin as he said, "What, and leave all our guests to fend for themselves?"

      "I'm sure they'll make do; besides, Lia's had enough of me already today, and I've no doubt she and your lovely wife will find something to talk about." And with that they departed. 

     

Thomas and Percival sat in the corner of the library, looking out through the window to the party below them. "So, about this business matter--it seems to be getting along quite nicely, yes?" Thomas knew very well to what 'business matter' his brother was referring.
     Thomas sighed and slouched down in his seat. "Nothing about our circumstance has changed, Percy; it is merely as I told you--a business arrangement to repair her reputation."
      His brother scoffed. "Oh, posh. That little faux pas of hers was forgotten the day after she uttered that blasted poem. Listen to me, Tom, she came here with you, she's leaving with you, she's here for you. And even if that is because of your arrangement, I would be glad of it. Whom did she go to when she thought she was ruined? She came to you. She trusts you, Tom."
       "Of course she trusts me, Percy! We're friends! That's what friends do--they trust each other. But they don't up and marry each other--the idea's preposterous!"
       "Why?"His shout cut their conversation in half--hanging in the air like an arrow frozen mid-flight. "Why can't you get it into that thick skull of yours that the only kind of love worth having is the kind that starts with friendship? I can't imagine how miserable my life would be if Miriam and I weren't friends--if i didn't like spending time with my wife! How can you even think that just because you're a friend to her you can't be something more, too? I had hoped you had more sense than that."



Cecilia and Miriam walked arm in arm as the sun began to set behind the horizon. They'd spent the last hours welcoming guests and making small talk with gossip-prone ladies of the Ton; it was just within the last ten minutes they'd gotten any time alone. As they walked, Miriam began to notice a certain quietness from her companion. Upon inquiring as to why, Cecilia only shook her head, saying, "I was only thinking."
      Sitting down on a garden bench, Cecilia asked the question that'd been on the tip of her tongue ever since she'd arrived. "It's just, I was wondering about you and Percy. How did you know you he was the one?"
      Miriam smiled, looking across the lawn to where her husband stood surrounded by other men of her acquaintance. "Percy..." she paused, searching for the right words. Abandoning her plight, she told her everything at once: "Percy drove me mad. But then I got to know him, and we became friends. He made me laugh. When I was with him I never had to worry about pretending to be something I wasn't. I knew I loved him the day I realized that when I was with him I knew exactly who I was." Cecilia smiled, following Miriam's gaze to the group of men where Percy was. Among them she found Thomas, and the moment her eyes fell on him he turned and caught her stare. He smiled and let everything else around them disappear, though they were yards apart.
      Eventually a man in the group noticed Thomas's distracted state and turned to see Cecilia gazing in their direction. He flashed a grin, winked, and turned back around. Cecilia's cheeks suddenly began to burn, and she became all too conscious of Miriam's eyes on her. Flushed, she stood and began to walk away, murmuring something about seeing what time Thomas wanted to leave, but all the while only feeling the man's stare boring into her figure.