While Elizabeth closeted with Mr. Bennet, Darcy had the oddly satisfying experience of watching another gentleman become incensed at the way that Mrs. Bennet spoke of Elizabeth.
As soon as they entered the drawing room, Mrs. Bennet pressed Lord Hartley into a sofa with many promises of refreshments and tea. She placed Miss Catherine—Miss Bennet now—to sit next to Lord Hartley.
Bingley and his wife sat far enough away to mostly not be part of the conversation, and Miss Lydia escaped being made to sit at Lord Hartley’s other side by laughing, ignoring her mother’s suggestion, and walking over to Darcy to whisper into his ear, “Do you mean to marry Lizzy? La, what a joke that shall be! But the glory will come to me, because I caused the two of you to be introduced.”
Darcy was caught between stiff offended propriety and curiosity. “Whatever,” he whispered back, “gave you the notion that I might do that.”
The girl rolled her eyes.
Mrs. Bennet apologized at great length and with a great many words to Lord Hartley for the rudeness of her husband in ignoring such a great guest—a viscount!—for the sake of talking to Miss Lizzy. “He’s always making such a todo about Lizzy. You would think she was his own daughter, and not no one with no fortune who no one cares about in the world. I do not complain, not even when he takes the bread out of his own daughters’ mouths to feed her. But we’ve no need to worry anymore. When a woman has two daughters so well married as my Jane and my Mary, she should leave off worrying about anything. But I still have two girls who are excellently pretty. Do you not agree that my Kitty and my Lydia are lovely creatures?”
Lord Hartley deigned not to make reply.
Miss Catherine said something to him, and the usually voluble, friendly, and slightly flirtatious Lord Hartley replied with a grunt.
Darcy carefully controlled his smile.
Then Hartley said to Mrs. Bennet, “You treat Elizabeth as being of no account?”
Now it was Mrs. Bennet’s turn to look at him oddly. “She is not a bad girl. No, no, no. You could never think she is a bad girl. No one raised in my house could turn out badly. I only wish that Mr. Bennet did not spend so much upon her. I wish he did not pay so much attention to her.”
“I think,” Lord Hartley said, “from what I have seen of her, she deserves every possible attention.”
Miss Lydia whispered to Darcy again, “La! Is he in love with Lizzy too? That would be an even better joke. Will you two fight a duel? I long to see a duel fought.”
“If we did,” Darcy whispered back, unable to prevent himself from being greatly amused, “we would hardly invite you to observe.”
“I would sneak out to the field.”
“Such events are usually held at the break of dawn. Would you manage to wake yourself in time to reach the site?”
Miss Lydia tittered at the question. “I would not sleep at all! Oh, but you should marry Lizzy. Your jokes are very much alike.”
This was promising. It was like Miss Lydia was telling him that even if he had made a terrible mistake by not asking herearlier,maybe he still had a right to make an offer for Elizabeth’s hand.
Mrs. Bennet continued to worsen her position with Hartley, “I really cannot believe that Mr. Bennet is allowing Lizzy, and whatever argument she must have had with Mary,to take so much of his time. He should simply order Lizzy to make an apology. I do wonder what it could be, Mary had been most insistent that Lizzy visit. I do not see why, she can hardly be neededthere, and she is very helpful tome. Lydia and Kitty never stand to ring the bell for me, or go to the kitchen to fetch tea, or to the front room to bring my shawl. But then they are the daughters of the house, so it is proper that their time be better respected.”
Before Lord Hartley could determine what cutting remark to make to Mrs. Bennet—Darcy had known him since they were both small children, and he knew his habit of pausing in conversation and frowning silently before he would find a particularly unkind and clever remark when offended—Elizabeth and Mr. Bennet came into the drawing room.
There was a cast about Elizabeth’s eyes that suggested she had been crying, but she also smiled.
Both Darcy and Hartley instantly went to her side.
Mr. Bennet shook Hartley’s hand, and he said, “After what Elizabeth has said, I am happy to know you, and I do hope we shall be friends.”
“I hope that as well.”
Mrs. Bennet frowned at Elizabeth. “That dress, Lizzy. Your hair. Lord, that is a fine dress. Did Mary give it to you?”
Elizabeth studied Mrs. Bennet with an expression that seemed…serene. And then she smiled with that mischievous glint in her eyes that Darcy loved. “Oh, no, no. Not at all. Papa did.” She tapped Mr. Bennet on the shoulder. “He thought I should have something proper to wear when I travelled. Quite right. The way I’ve dressed has been dreadful. I do not think I ever shall again. But what do you think of my hair? I consider this style quite fetching.”
Darcy wondered very much how Mrs. Bennet would reply to this. She said in a rather hollow voice, “It is lovely. I do notthink I would have chosen anything different… But my dear Mr. Bennet, how did you afford such a dress for Lizzy! Are not new clothes so dear? You always tell me how we cannot afford as many as our girls need.”
“Oh, consider it an investment,” Mr. Bennet said with an amused tone. “I rather hope that she shall marry a very rich gentleman indeed.”
“Papa!” Elizabeth blushed, glanced at Darcy, and then absolutely refused to look at him again.
“Yes, but—” Mrs. Bennet began. “Besides that would hardly benefit us. I think—”
