As they rode, Darcy admitted to himself his anger had been further fuelled by the seducer standing so close to Miss Elizabeth. Although he knew there was nothing he could allow himself regarding the enticing woman, the last thing he would countenance was Wickham imposing on her.
With thanks to Bingley, Darcy had calmed down. Hence rather than gallop, he kept Zeus at a comfortable canter. His friend urged his own stallion forward so they were riding parallel one to the other and a few feet apart.
“Bingley, will you invite the militia to the ball you are holding next week?” Darcy enquired.
“I had intended to, but if you are worried about Wickham being there, I will not,” Bingley offered.
“He has always been a coward, I am sure once he knows I am in residence he will find an excuse, more than likely blaming it on me, for not attending,” Darcy opined.
“If he does attend, he will be watched all of the time,” Bingley assured his friend. “I suppose if we invite the officers and specifically exclude him it may raise some questions better left unasked.”
Darcy, not for an instant, suspected Bingley would not keep his secret if he told him about Giana and Ramsgate. He decided not to as he was relatively sure Bingley would call Wickham out. Like Richard, his friend could be a hothead at times. Given Bingley considered Giana a younger sister, Darcy had no doubt his knowing what the profligate wastrel had attempted would have set him on a path of revenge.
There were times he questioned whether he had done the right thing by stopping Richard from hunting Wickham down after Ramsgate. Darcy convinced himself it would have been disrespectful to his beloved father’s memory if he acted against his godson in that manner.
“At least, I gained Miss Bennet’s consent to partner me for the first and supper sets,” Bingley stated happily once he had pushed thoughts of George Wickham from his head.
“Are you not worried you will raise expectations if you open the ball and then dance the supper set with her?” Darcy probed.
“What of it, she is an absolute angel, and before you say I have fallen in and out of love with alacrity in the past, never have I had the depth of feelings for any of those ladies which I have for Miss Bennet.”
“With her lack of fortune and her connections in trade, she is beneath you,” Darcy stated without thinking. As he said what he had, he realised he was verbalising his own thoughts about why he could not offer for Miss Elizabeth.
“Do I not have more than enough money already? Unlike some,” Bingley gave his friend a pointed look, “money is not an incentive for me to marry. You sound much like Caroline! I am the son of a tradesman and she is the daughter of a gentleman, so she is in fact a step up for me.”
He could not refute what his friend said. He had echoed sentiments Miss Bingley had spouted. Darcy felt rather ashamed of himself. He said nothing and simply looked ahead.
For the remainder of the ride back to Netherfield Park, the two friends rode on without further conversation.
~~~~~~~/~~~~~~~
“Lizzy, where were you, I called your name twice before you responded,” Jane enquired as she took her sister’s arm. “You have been in your own world since we departed Meryton. Are you enamoured with Mr. Wickham who is to join the militia? Have you caught Lydia’s affliction of partiality to men in uniform?” Jane’s teasing snapped Elizabeth out of her deep thoughts about Mr. Darcy and Mr. Wickham and what she had seen pass between the men.
“Janey, did you notice what occurred between Mr. Darcy and Mr. Wickham, or was your attention solely focused on your Mr. Bingley?” Jane’s cheeks bloomed with a deep blush.
“He is not my mister anything,” Jane protested weakly.
“Yet,” Elizabeth added.
“I suppose I was rather inattentive to anything else once Mr. Bingley was before me,” Jane acknowledged, the colour of her cheeks deepening. To which Elizabeth asked, “Do you love him?”
“As I have never been in love before, I cannot say for sure. However, my feelings for him are extremely tender and I am never happier than I am when in his company. He is everything I could hope for in a young man.”
“It does not hurt he is handsome and rich as well,” Elizabeth teased. “I give you leave to like him. I think you two would be very well matched.”
“It is up to him to speak and until he does there is little I can do,” was Jane’s response.
“Do you remember the day Charlotte told us it is her belief if you like a man, you must show him in some way so he has no doubts his regard is returned? At the time I disagreed with her, but now I am not so sure.”
“Of what do you speak, Lizzy?”
“Jane, you are my dearest sister so do not take offence to what I am about to say.”
“You know you can tell me anything you desire.”
“I, who have known you all of my life, have a hard time discerning your true feelings. Mr. Bingley’s acquaintance is of a relatively short duration. How is he to tell you care for him when your face shows no more than it does when you are in the company of any others?”
Jane cogitated on her sister’s words before she made a reply. “Lizzy, you know I would not cross the lines of propriety.”
