~~~~~~~/~~~~~~~
Now that his name was known, on Monday, not long after ten in the morning, a stream of gentlemen from the neighbourhood presented themselves to call on Mr Bingley. It was common knowledge he was the son of a tradesman, but with a reputed five thousand pounds per annum. Hence, noneof the mothers of daughters old enough to marry cared about his roots.
Bennet arrived at the same time as his friend, Sir William Lucas. Sir William’s property, Lucas Lodge, shared a common fence with Bennet’s estate on the western border of Longbourn. When Nichols announced them it was only Messrs Bingley and Hurst in the drawing room.
Ignoring her role as mistress, Caroline Bingley refused to entertain a bunch of puffed up country mushrooms, as she called them, so when the first callers arrived, she had withdrawn to her private sitting room, pulling her older sister with her.
Bingley enjoyed meeting his neighbours and welcomed them all enthusiastically. When he heard Mr Bennet had five daughters, he hoped one of them would be his next angel.
As he and Bennet were about to leave, Sir William remembered the Michaelmas assembly which would be on Tuesday, the following day. “Mr Bingley, are you aware there is an assembly in the evening on the morrow? It will be a capital way for you to meet many more of your neighbours,” Sir William informed his host.
“I had heard talk of it,” Bingley averred, “Would we be welcome?”
“Very much so, yes, you and your party are invited to attend,” Sir William responded. His hope was his eldest daughter, Charlotte, who was five and twenty already, might catch Mr Bingley’s eye.
“My friend will be joining us later today; may I bring him as well?” Bingley enquired.
“Of course, any resident of your house will be more than welcome,” Sir William replied. His only worry was as soon as the men saw Bennet’s daughters they would forget Charlotte existed. Could this be the time it would be different?
Bennet had to school his features as he knew what hisfriend was about. As much as he liked to make sport of his wife, she was not wrong about Jane and her beauty. Although he was not nearly as sociable as his wife, he had seen the mouths hanging open when strangers first beheld his eldest daughter. He had a feeling Mr Bingley would be one of those men. He would consider attending the assembly to put his theory to the test.
~~~~~~~/~~~~~~~
Darcy was not pleased he had been committed to attend a public country ball on the morrow. Until Miss Bingley volunteered to remain with him; he had thought to stay back at the manor house.
As soon as the harridan said she would remain at the house to keep him company, his decision was made—he would attend the assembly.
Chapter 2
Jane and Elizabeth were grateful their mother had shifted her attention to Lydia—who they both agreed should still be in the school room—so they were free of her conflicting orders regarding their gowns for the assembly.
“I wish Mama would not go on about my looks the way she does,” Jane lamented, “I know she loves us and wants what is best for us, but she does not go about it very well.”
“Do you refer to Mr Farrington who wrote you the verses when you were seventeen?” Elizabeth smiled.
“Him, Mr Wilson, and Mr Joden. Mama thinks she helps, but she frightened all three of them away. I know how much she will be hurt if I tell her why they all left,” Jane averred. “I had hopes I could fall in love with Mr Farrington, the poetry he wrote impressed me, especially after you did not recognise them as having been copied from any book of poetry which has been published.”
“If Mr Bingley has an inclination towards you, and more importantly, you for him, I will do what I am able to in order to keep the worst of Mama’s excesses from his view.” Elizabeth arched an eyebrow as Jane gave a dainty cough. “Jane Lydia Bennet, do you have another of your colds?” Elizabeth demanded, her arms akimbo.
The previous winter Jane had, as she was prone to do, come down with a cold in December. All would have been well had it not turned into influenza. Elizabeth had been greatly worried for her sister, but thankfully, with much care from MrJones—the apothecary and doctor in one person in the area—Jane had begun to get well, and eventually, she had made a full recovery. On the day Mr Jones had announced Jane out of danger, Elizabeth had noted he was holding something back from her parents.
She had followed the man out into the drive where his gig was waiting for him. At first he had claimed he had told her parents all, but Elizabeth had pressed him. Mr Jones admitted he suspected the infection had damaged Jane’s lungs, but as he could not be sure, he had not said anything to Mr and Mrs Bennet. It was the reason she was extremely vigilant any time Jane had a cold.
“I am well Lizzy, my throat is dry, that is all.” To emphasise her point, Jane drank some water from the glass next to her side of the bed. “All better now.”
“Janey, you know how I worry about you, you will not hide anything regarding your health from me, will you?” Elizabeth queried worriedly. “Ever since Mr Jones told me...”
“I love you too, Lizzy,” Jane hugged her younger sister. “Do not forget, he said possible damage, not a certainty.”
“Speaking of love, does Mama understand that we will only accept the proposal from one we respect, and love deeply? I know she worries for our futures, and Papa does nothing to relieve her concerns, but with all due respect to our parents, we do not want an unequal union like theirs.”
“We made that vow before I came out, when you were but thirteen, and I have no intention of reneging on it. I agree unless there is mutual respect, what is seen as love is only infatuation, and it does not last very long. As mismatched as our parents are, if they had not married, we would not be in the world.”
“There is that,” Elizabeth agreed. She looked at herself in the mirror. Everything looked as it should. “If you are ready, let us go downstairs and wait for Mama and our sisters.”
“Has Papa told you why he is joining us at the assembly?” Jane asked. “It is very seldom that he is part of the family party for a ball.”
“No, Janey. I am sorry, and am no more enlightened as to why Papa is joining us than you are,” Elizabeth asserted. She could guess he saw an opportunity for amusement, but she did not articulate that. Papa enjoyed laughing, but he was never malicious. The only thing Elizabeth faulted him for with regards to amusing himself, was his propensity to provoke Mama.
