Darcy reined in his horse and stopped next to his friend on the lane, and continued. “Because I have never seen you actually serious about any lady. You meet an angel, you follow her assiduously, you create expectations, and then you lose interest and abandon her. I have watched you do it countless times. This time it is different. Miss Bennet has no desire to continue her unwed state, and has paid a great sum of money to meet men who are equally as serious in their desire to wed. You will lose interest in her, as you do all the others, and she will have wasted her money and her time here. It will be a cruelty, whether you realise what you are doing or not.”
“Darcy!” exclaimed his friend, surprised at his sudden disapproval.
“I have never spoken like this to you before, Bingley, but this is my godmother’s home, and whatever disdain I may feel for ladies who pay to line themselves up to be inspected like cattle, Miss Bennet does not deserve your usual behaviour, and it might reflect poorly on my aunt’s parties, as well,” Darcy said firmly.
Bingley, riled beyond his usual composure, wheeled his horse around and rode away in the other direction.
Darcy watchedhis friend gallop away in a huff, then after a moment turned his horse back towards the path, his heart leaping into his throat in surprise to find Miss Elizabeth Bennet standing in front of his mount, her hands on her hips, and her gaze stern. She looked radiant with anger. Darcy found it strangely attractive.
“Whatever disdain you may feel for ladies who pay to line themselves up to be inspected like cattle, Mr Darcy, I will know what you meant about Mr Bingley’s usual behaviour, whether your words weremeant for me or not. Have you brought a rake amongst a group of respectable gentlewomen who only wish to be married?” she demanded.
“Miss Elizabeth, you startled me,” said Darcy in reply, wondering where she had come from and grateful he had not run her down with his horse. “You must have come from the woods, and only heard my last words.” The lady only crossed her arms over her chest andglaredat him. Darcy sighed and dismounted his horse.
“Miss Elizabeth, I apologize for my unkind words, that was uncharitable of me,” he began.
“I have no need for charity, Mr Darcy, I only wish to know what you meant about that man who is chasing my sister so assiduously.”
Darcy sighed again. “I will be entirely truthful with you, Miss Elizabeth. You have been nothing but kind to my sister, and you are fiercely loyal to your own. I respect that. You deserve to know all.” He offered her his arm, and turned her back to the path, his horse following behind them. Miss Elizabeth barely laid her fingers upon his arm as she turned with him, and he could feel her rage simmering within her. The woman was nearly vibrating with it.
“Mr Bingley has been my friend since my third year of university. He was in his first year. I am a reserved sort of person, and I do not mix well in company. Like my father, I tend to seek out the company of lively, pleasant people who ease my way in society.” Mr Darcy paused, wondering how to proceed.
“We have been friends for more than eight years, and I have always valued his friendship. He is a good man. He does not drink to excess or carouse. He does not gamble any more than what is polite at a party, and he is exceedingly loyal and trustworthy. His only flaw is that he falls quickly for statuesque blonde angels, and just as quickly moves on when his attention to them has been disrupted.”
“Does he harm them?” Elizabeth demanded.
“I do not understand your question, Miss Elizabeth,” Darcy said in surprise. “I would never spend my time with a man who hurt women.”
“But has heharmedthem, Mr Darcy, and a man with a young sister knows precisely what I mean.” Elizabeth stopped and turned to facehim. “Does he create expectations, make them fall in love with him and then leave them to the mercies of their local gossips? Does he leave them heartbroken? Or, God forbid, does he leave themruined?” she asked meaningfully.
“Miss Elizabeth, it is not for me to know a lady’s heart,” Darcy answered honestly. “I can truthfully say that there have been times when my friend has created expectations, and then moved on. Whether the feelings of the ladies in question were hurt, I could not say, although I will maintain to my grave that the major portion of them have been shameless fortune hunters. I know your sister is not one of those,” He turned back to the path and continued to walk again. “I can safely say that he has never left a womanruined. He is not a cad, nor a rake. Just a lighthearted young man who is easily turned by a pretty face. I would never have him in the company of my own sister if this were not true.”
“I thank you for speaking candidly with me, Mr Darcy,” she said as they approached the house. “I will leave you to your morning, I must attend to mytoilette, so that I may line up with the other ladies for inspection at breakfast.”
Darcy’s heart sank. “Miss Bennet,” he said plaintively. When she turned back to him in anger, he said sincerely, “I am truly very sorry that I said that. I did not mean it.”
“Mr Darcy, why would you expect me to believe that you said it but did not mean it? You do not look to me like a man that says things he does not mean.”
“I will amend my claim to say that I did notrealisethat I did not mean it until I heard myself say it,” Darcy tried again. “Have you never said anything in your life that you regretted the moment that it passed your lips?”
Miss Elizabeth stood and continued to glare at him for a moment, then gathered her skirts and rushed towards the house.
CHAPTER 30
Elizabeth was furious as she entered the apartment that she shared with Jane and Mary. “Jane!” she called as she entered the bedroom her sisters shared. Jane was at the dressing table, putting the finishing touches on her appearance before she went downstairs. Mary had already gone down in the company of Miss Darcy and Miss Bates.
Elizabeth sank down on her sisters’ bed, and the story of what she had overheard, and all that Mr Darcy had confessed to her came tumbling out. “I could cheerfullymurderhim!” she spat. “Imagine, bringing a rake or a libertine, or whatever he is, to a party of ladies hoping to wed! It isindecent! I have half a mind to complain to Mrs Darlington.”
“Mr Bingley is not a rake, nor a libertine.” Jane reached across the end of the bed and clasped her sister’s hand. “I knew of this already, Lizzy.”
“You knew? But how?” Elizabeth gasped.
“Mr Bingley told me. Not long after he arrived.” Jane smiled at Elizabeth.
“Thenwhywould you allow him to court you, knowing he iscapricious?” demanded Elizabeth. “Wepaidfor you to come here to meet men whowantto wed!”
“He is not capricious, Lizzy! Only a man who wishes to marry, as we do, and has met with too many fortune hunters and insincere women in town,” Jane objected. “It is not his fault that he has been as unlucky in love as I have been.”
“I cannotbelievewhat I am hearing.” Elizabeth rose from the foot of the bed and began to pace. “Not only has the cadusedhis history to gain your sympathy, it hasworked!”
