Elizabeth’s curiosity was aroused when she saw Mr. Bingley say something to Jane and then make his way over towards where his friend was standing—not two feet from where she was sitting. Thanks to the proximity and the fact neither man modulated his voice, she was able to hear every word clearly.
“Come Darcy,” Bingley began, “I must have you dance. I hate to see you standing about by yourself in this stupid manner. The next set will begin after this next dance. You had much better join the line.”
“I certainly shall not. You know how I detest it unless I am particularly acquainted with my partner. At such an assembly as this it would be insupportable. I have done my duty to Miss Bingley and am engaged to dance the set after the next with Mrs. Hurst. There is not another woman in the room with whom it would not be a punishment for me to stand up.”
‘Well, he must have peculiar tastes if there is not a woman outside of his own party he could not deign to dance with, not even Janey!’ Elizabeth thought to herself as she smiled at the man’s ridiculous statement.
“I would not be so fastidious as you are,” cried Bingley, “for a kingdom! Upon my honour, I never met with so many pleasant girls in my life as I have this evening; and there are several of them who are uncommonly pretty.”
“Youare dancing with the only handsome girl in the room,” said Mr. Darcy, looking at the eldest Miss Bennet.
‘At least your judgement is not so very deficient,’ Elizabeth agreed silently with the aloof man’s estimation of her older sister.
“I agree, Miss Bennet is the most beautiful creature I ever beheld! But there is one of her sisters sitting down just behind you, who is very pretty, and I dare say very agreeable. Do let me ask my partner to introduce you.”
As she had wanted to meet the extremely handsome man since he had entered the room with the rest of the Netherfield Park party, Elizabeth sat up straighter and pushed her shoulders back in anticipation of being gratified with an introduction.
“Which do you mean?” and turning round Darcy looked for a moment at the young lady sitting behind him. He seemingly caught her eye, turned back to face his friend, and coldly stated, “She is tolerable, but not handsome enough to temptme; I am in no humour at present to give consequence to young ladies who are slighted by other men. You had better return to your partner and enjoy her smiles, for you are wasting your time with me.”
Bingley was shocked his friend had said something so ungentlemanly within the hearing of the woman. There was no more he could say as the dance was about to start and he would not leave the angel without her partner.
For his part, Darcy felt remorse for the words he had chosen to use. The truth was he had looked towards the young lady but had not seen her.
For the first few bars of the next dance, Elizabeth did not move. ‘It is bad enough Mama always tells me I am nothing to Jane, but now this man who I have never met denigrates my looks as well! What an insufferably rude, arrogant, and prideful man he is! How can he give me consequence? He and his friends have no consequence in our neighbourhood. What a disagreeable and hateful man. He may be handsome on the outside, but he is ugly inside,’ Elizabeth told herself silently.
She stood and deliberately stopped in front of the man who had just slighted her. She looked him up and down with as much disdain as she could muster and then turned on her heel and with her head held high, cut him and walked to the other side of the assembly room where she would wait for Charlotte.
Darcy’s blood froze in his veins. The woman he had just insulted stood in front of him, anger, hurt, and disdain aimed at him from the most beautiful emerald-green eyes he had ever seen.
Without a word, the woman who was obviously not intimidated by him in the least, turned on her heel, cut him, and stalked around to the opposite side of the room to where he stood. He thought back to the conversation he and Bingley had and realised neither of them lowered their voices, nor did they make sure no one was close enough to overhear them.
She must have heard! He looked to the empty chair where she had sat when he had turned to ostensibly evaluate the woman Bingley was putting forward as a partner and saw it was mere inches, a foot or two at best, from where he stood. He felt instant regret for his intemperate words. He knew he should apologise right away, but two things stopped him. The discomfort he felt talking to those he did not know and the fact he was Darcy of Pemberley. He was a member of theTon, at the top of the first circle of society. Should he have to apologise to someone whose situation in life was obviously so very far below his own?
~~~~~~~/~~~~~~~
“Eliza, why do you look angry?” Charlotte asked when she joined her friend after dancing with James Purvis.
“You know the set you just danced was the first one I chose to sit out, do you not?” Charlotte nodded. “I was sitting opposite just next to that rude, insufferable man, Mr. Darcy when Mr. Bingley…” Elizabeth related what had occurred to her friend.
“He did not say that! Aside from you, anyone could have heard him as well. Surely he has more good sense than that,” Charlotte surmised.
“A codfish would have behaved better I think,” Elizabeth replied, which caused both to laugh softly while looking across at the offending man from Derbyshire.
As uncomfortable as he was with making conversation with those with whom he was not familiar, knowing others were talking about him, and worse, laughing at him was something Darcy hated.
He watched as the one he insulted was joined by a taller and not nearly as pretty lady, and soon the two had their heads together. Now after truly looking at her he had to admit the one he slighted in that fashion was more than handsome enough to tempt him!
Darcy suspected he was the subject of their conversation and when they looked at him and laughed, he was certain he was right. That was when he heard the most bewitching sound. A tinkling laugh he had never heard before reached his ears above the hubbub of conversation in the ballroom.
He was almost sure the siren call was emanating from the lady about whom he had said the untrue words. On one hand, he hated being laughed at, while on the other, he would tolerate it if he was able to hear that wonderfully musical—like the tinkling of bells—laugh again.
Feelings of shame for his comments rather than just telling Bingley to desist importuning him to dance washed over Darcy. Regardless of their relative societal positions, he knew he should have apologised right away, but his feet were glued to the floor. He watched as the victim of his unwise words took to the dancefloor with a partner for the new set. He felt a pang of regret he had not asked Bingley to ask the sister he was dancing with to make the introductions. The Miss Bennet he was observing seemed to be very light on her feet and was, in his estimation, a very good dancer.
There was naught he could do about it now. To request an introduction and ask her to dance after his insult would only make him look capricious and more ridiculous.
A Darcynever looked absurd.
~~~~~~~/~~~~~~~
