“I will concede it is a reasonable basis on which to break a stalemate, but if I am being asked for my preference, it would be to earn the prize.”
“Are you so certain you could best me on another field?”
“I would like the opportunity to do so,” she answered.
“It is consistent with your character to insist on proving yourself,” Mr. Darcy said approvingly. “Although I concur with Fitzwilliam that it is perfectly reasonable to award the prize to you based on the tiebreaker of your birthday, if you both agree, I think I have a good idea for the final game.”
“Very well, sir,” Darcy said, “let us proceed.” After Elizabeth nodded her approval, Mr. Darcy called the others over to the side, where they proceeded to whisper among themselves. At one point, Mr. Darcy beckoned for a nearby footman and seemed to give him some instructions before returning to the others.
“Do you know what he means to propose?” Elizabeth asked Darcy as they stood side by side, watching the others who were now speaking with their heads close together.
“No,” he answered. “I hope you do not mean to repeat your self-sacrifice. I would prefer to best you fair and square.”
Conceding the justice of the insulting implication she might not try given her actions on the last game, Elizabeth chose to focus on the more flattering inference that Darcy found her to be a worthy opponent. She intended to prove him right by beating him.
“We have decided that the final game to determine our winner will be a guessing game of sorts,” Mr. Barlow informed Darcy and Elizabeth, the latter of whom thought the group looked entirely too pleased with themselves for it to be that simple.
“Charades?” Darcy asked.
“No, no, something tailored to our players,” Mr. Gardiner said, then turning to Mr. Darcy, he added, “Perhaps, as this was your brilliant idea, you would explain?”
“Certainly,” he answered.
Just then, two footmen entered through the far doors, each carrying a chair. Mrs. Reynolds followed, directing them. They exited and returned with two additional chairs, repeating this until they had created a small seating cluster with six seats. “Let us sit.”
He led the group to the chairs, with Elizabeth and Darcy following.
“Is there a chair for Miss Elizabeth?” Darcy asked after all six chairs were taken by the rest of the party, and they were left standing.
“No, apologies, Lizzy, but you and Master Fitzwilliam will stand for this game,” Mr. Gardiner told her.
“The guessing game?” Lizzy asked.
“Yes, let us get on with it. I want to see Lizzy beat Fitzwilliam.”
“I appreciate the vote of confidence, Georgie,” her brother said dryly. “Now, please advise us how to play this particular guessing game.”
“To put it simply, it is a guessing game about you,” Mr. Darcy answered.
“About me?” Darcy asked.
“Yes, and about Miss Elizabeth.”
“We will ask you questions about her, and Mr. Darcy or Miss Darcy will ask her questions about you,” Mrs. Gardiner explained.
“Very well,” Lizzy agreed, though she foresaw several ways this game could go poorly for her.
“I have the first question,” Georgiana said, her enthusiasm evident. “What book is Fitzwilliam reading right now?”
“I believe he is reading two books at present,” Elizabeth answered. “He is rereading the Republic and is reading Progress in Agriculture: A Detailed Account of Modern Techniques as Applied to the English Farm for the first time. I believe Mr. Darcy recommended it to him.”
“Your memory is quite precise,” Darcy responded. Turning to the others, he added, “Miss Elizabeth is correct. We spoke about this quite recently.”
“One point for Miss Elizabeth,” Miss Baxter said.
It occurred to Elizabeth that winning this game might mean revealing how very closely she paid attention to her “opponent.”
“What is Elizabeth’s favourite flower?” Mrs. Gardiner asked.
