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"Put that away" chided my mother "You'll get a reputation for being bookish"

Well that would never do, now would it. No suitor would consider an educated girl, she might make him look foolish. But I would sigh and go back to my reading, and eventually they would ignore me. We were quite different, my sister and I. Often Victoria would take a real liking to one of these young fools, and she had even agreed to go to a dance with one of them.

"You should come too Penny," she pleaded "We'll have such fun, and just because I'm going with Henry doesn't mean I can't look at the others! Everyone will be there, and I'll so want someone to talk to, oh please Penny, just this once."

I depised those silly dances. It was all a show of dresses, if you ask me, not a sincere conversation in the place. Times had changed since their day, this was the 1970's for heavens sake, but somehow our family had been left in the 19th century! Still, I love my sister very much and would do anything to make her happy. So I agreed to attend, on condition she didn't try to hook me up with Giles again like last time. That had been an unmitigated disaster.

Much as I expected, it was the same old faces, although some we hadn't seen for a while, distant cousins who had grown up, and it was these who Victoria seemed most interested in. All the while dancing with Henry she was studying others around the room. No stone unturned. I did the usual round of greetings and polite smiles, and decided that this was the last time, the very last time I was being paraded like this, not even for Victoria could I go through this again. The air was thick with repugnant cigar smoke, and I longed for the days when men withdrew to smoke, for the sake of the ladies. Ironic how, in a pathetic nod to modern times, they had only managed to makes the ladies' lives more uncomfortable than they already were. I went outside for fresh air.

The garden was never lovelier. It was the part of Grandmother's house I loved the most, and always had. Heady camelias and honeysuckles wound up the latticework of the gazbeo and the exquisite colors of the formal beds created a living tapestry. Lost in this idyll I barely noticed a young man standing by the greenhouse, until he moved. He was tall, of an athletic build, and immediately stood out from the scrawny specimens my social circles generally offered. He was also wearing glasses, something quite frowned upon in my family.

"Hello there," I called, "I see I'm not the only one who finds the garden more exciting than the gossip."

Not realizing that he wasn't alone he the garden he startled. But instead of responding, he hurried inside and disappeared. I didn't see him again all evening, until just as we were leaving.

"Who is that?" I asked Victoria.

"Oh that's just Charles. I didn't know he was here tonight, he never comes to dances."

"So how do you know him?"

"Well, he's Louisa's bother, you know?"

That explained it. Lousia had been Victoria's best friend in prep school but her family had been abroad. They only returned a couple of years back, but now lived in London. Victoria had stayed with them several times when she'd been in town.

"He seems very shy."

"Well, who wouldn't be, surely you've seen those horrible glasses?"

They did look very strong, but I hadn't noticed at first. I certainly didn't find them horrible, quite intriguing actually. Altogether he had a very handsome face, I was quite taken with him.

A few weeks later I found a good reason to go into London myself, so I called Louisa to ask if she'd mind me coming by. She seemed rather surprised at this request, probably as I'd often been quite spiteful to her in years gone by, but time heals, and she only said that she looked forward to seeing me Friday evening. When I arrived, Charles answered the door.

"Oh HELLO!" I said trying to best to look totally shocked to see him "What a small world!"

He looked at his feet, whispered to come in so quietly I hardly heard him, and then made himself very scarce. I spent a tediously dull evening listening to Louisa's gossip, which I'd already heard before several times from my sister, and retired to bed early. Luckily Charles was at breakfast the next morning. I couldn't place just what it was I found so appealing in him, perhaps his shyness, but I also liked the way he looked. I couldn't take my eyes off him, unfortunately this just seemed to make him more uncomfortable.

"What exactly are you in London for Penelope?" asked Louisa's mother.

This I had worked out carefully.

"I'm going to see the Tutankhamun exhibition at the British Museum"

Charles looked like he was going to die.

"Why! How perfect! Charles studied in Alexandria, he's a qualified Egyptologist!"

I knew that of course, I'd been doing my research.

"I'm sure he'll be your personal guide, won't you Charles?"

Charles had gone the same color as the tablecloth, and appeared to be trying to climb under same

"Yes...yes...of course" he whispered, eventually.

Never once looking at me, or making any attempt at conversation he strolled with me the short walk to the BM. It was a beautiful autumn day and London had that glow cast over it that only London can. Russell Square was full of pigeons, litter, and Japanese tourists. It was a world away from my rambling Somerset home. But all I could look at was Charles, and wishing he wasn't trying so hard to be invisible.

It was a good thing we set off early, the queues for the exhibition were already awfully long, and I resigned myself to standing outside the better part of an hour at least. But suddenly, unexpectedly, and without looking round at me, Charles spoke.

"We can avoid the crowds. There's a side door."

I followed him into a door marked "Private". There was a man stationed inside, but on seeing Charles he just smiled and waved us in. Wonderful!

The public were already filing slowly around the exhibits, following the designated route, but we went a different way. I found myself in a room of small pieces laid out on simple tables without the explanatory plaques. These just had numbers. Charles, gestured for me to have a closer look.

"Why are these not on display?"

"There isn't room for everything. Besides, these pieces are still being studied. We don't even know what this is."

He carefully picked up a small oddly shaped piece of carved stone.

"Some sort of amulet." I offered, and he seemed quite taken aback.

"You know about these things?" he asked.

"Oh yes! I've read everything I could lay my hands on about Egypt ever since I was a child."

For the first time since I'd met him, he made eye contact, just a glance sideways, and the slightest hint of a smile flashed across his face. He began to speak more openly too, of his studies, and his obvious absolute passion for the subject. We examined a number of pieces, I offered my thoughts, he offered his, and I actually felt he relaxed and began to enjoy himself. His voice, ever soft and quiet, had a beautiful tone, and when he finally called me by name I felt quite giddy.

"Penny, look at this".

It was a piece of papyrus, just a small piece, quite faded, but some writing was still legible on it. He read aloud, translating directly from the hieroglyphs, and when he hesitated I finished it for him. He looked stunned. He was looking directly at me, and I could see his beautiful face properly.

"You learned Egyptian....by yourself?"

"Yes, totally by myself. Didn't even tell anyone I was doing it. My parents would have a fit if they knew. They already think I'm a terrible swot, and that it's not at all ladylike."

"How ironic," and he actually laughed "I'm always being told it's not very masculine. I wonder who they DO want to do this work?"

It was a good question.

Having overcome his initial shyness, I found him to be quite talkative. We spent the entire day in the musuem and finally, after the exhibition closed to the public, we saw the main exhibits in peace. Charles had obviously spent a lot of time studying these, he seemed to know them intimately.

"They've taken some X-Rays," he confided in me "Of the mummy, there's evidence of foul play. May explain why he died so young. He married, of course, a half-sister as was the custom, they were very young, it was ceremonial. But he didn't have time to leave an heir. So that Dynasty ended. Lots of motives, lots of intrigue."

Now he smiled really broadly and his whole face lit up. I was totally bowled over by this. I couldn't remember ever having seen a nicer face. An urge to kiss him came to me, but knowing how disastrous that would be, I resisted and simply smiled back with a mock conspiratorial wink.

"We'll never really know, will we?"

We left the museum and walked back to his parents' home. This time we chatted on the way, mostly about the exhibition, but I also asked him about his stay in Egypt and he was happy to tell me about it. When we arrived at the house we were actually laughing together, and Louisa and her mother both seemed totally taken aback. We both excused ourselves for showers before dinner, and while I was dressing in my room Mrs Wilmot came in, smiling.

"I don't know what you did to Charles today, but I'd rather like to thank you!"

"Thank me? He was so interesting, I feel like I've been back in time. He really knows his stuff."

"He doesn't get a lot of fun time, with girls his own age Penny, he's usually shunned because of his heavy glasses. I think he's got a lot to offer, but nobody ever bothers to find out."

His glasses yes, of course. I had almost forgotten. All I could see when I pictured him was a handsome young man, a FASCINATING young man, with so much life in him. Yes, he needed more fun.

He was quieter again at dinner, as if it was expected of him, but we exchanged a couple of smiles. Louisa gave me some very odd looks, not at all friendly, but I assumed it was just protectiveness for her brother. Obviously she thought his fragile ego could be so easily broken. She wasn't to know I wouldn't break him.

Sunday morning breakfast was very leisurely and Louisa's father made us all laugh by reading from the newspaper aloud. He seemed, like his wife, to be a very warm person, foreign travel softening his attitude compared to most people I usually found myself with. He and Charles seemed to have an especially close relationship, and every so often he'd nudge his son and point to something in the newspaper. Then to my delight Charles called to me.

"You'll appreciate this Penny, look!"

It was an article on an archaelogical dig in Turkey. It showed evidence of a city older than any known before. Definitely my cup of tea. Mr Wilmot relinquished his newspaper to us and Charles spread it out on the table so we could both read it together. He stood very close to me and I could feel the warmth of his body next to mine. Aware of heat from another direction I could feel Louisa's eyes burning into me. Now I couldn't resist, I smiled at her deliberately and leaned towards Charles so that my head was directly under his. She looked angry. Some mischief took hold of me. Now I turned round to face him so that there was no space between us at all and said,

"Charles! Do you have any books on this?"

Our eyes met and he flushed, but there was no fear. What I saw was absolute delight and enthusiasm. And something else.

"Yes! Yes! Follow me!"

Giving her a smirk as I turned I joined him in the family's comfortable library.