“I will be glad to see your sister again; it has been about ten years since we met her at Snowhaven. You and your late father were at Glen Morgan Heights, so we did not meet you as well,” Elizabeth declared.
“Your middle name is Georgiana, is it not?” When Elizabeth nodded, he continued, “I remember Giana gushing about a cousin she met whose middle name was the same as hers.” Darcy paused. “If Miss Bingley realises who you are and what your connections are, she will attempt to ingratiate herself to you…” He stopped when Cousin Bennet raised his hand.
“We know all about ourtenants,” Bennet revealed. “We never allow a lease on Netherfield Park until we have had the prospective lessee thoroughly investigated. Based on Mr and Miss Bingley’s characters, it could have gone either way with regards to his being awarded the lease.”
“It is your estate?” Darcy asked in wonder. Obviously, his assumptions about the neighbourhood were all wrong.
“Mama and Papa are managing it until Tommy is five and twenty. It is then that my younger brother will take ownership of his estate. Henry,” she inclined her head to her twin, who was dancing with Julia Long, “will have Longbourn one day. As far as Miss Bingley goes, I am afraid the cat is already out of the bag. Based on her consumption of the society and gossip pages, she puzzled out who we are.”
“It is good to meet you, Mr and Mrs Bennet,” Darcy gave a half bow. “I will do what I am able to keep Miss Bingley at bay.”
“We are family, so please address us as Becca and Bennet,” Bennet allowed. “Do not concern yourself with Miss Bingley; we know how to deal with ones of her ilk.” He paused as he cogitated. “There is one thing you may be of assistance in.”
“Anything,” Darcy averred firmly. “And please call me Darcy. You may have heard that I am called Fitz by some family. I do not love the name, but answer to it.”
“You may not be able to tell this, but Jane is obviously very uncomfortable in Mr Bingley’s company.” Bennet’s eyes rested on the couple who were coming to the end of their second dance. “Jane dislikes being seen for her looks only, and besides that, she is about to become engaged to another of your cousins.”
“Andy!” Darcy exclaimed. “Before he left for India, I had heard he was in love with a cousin; now I know which one. You know he is expected in the next few weeks, do you not? It will be my pleasure to help; I will warn Bingley off.”
“We do know that. And thank you for your assistance in this, Cousin,” Becca responded. “Jane is a strong woman, but we would rather her not have to fend off unwanted attentions. You may want to remind your friend to review his lease. There are certain clauses which call for eviction if he contravenes them, regardless of intent.”
Seeing Lizzy was comfortable with Darcy, Becca and Bennet continued their slow promenade around the room.
“Cousin Elizabeth, may I have the honour of your next open set?”
“You may have the fifth set, CousinFitz, but I do have a condition,” Elizabeth allowed, her eyes sparkling with mirth. “I am to dance the next set with your friend.”
“Then I look forward to the fifth set. What is the condition?”
“With our mutual cousin a colonel, you must be aware of how many young men are in the army.”
Darcy allowed it to be so.
“It is why we all sit out two sets; I just did so for the first of the two I will not dance. Nevertheless, there are some young ladies who have not, or hardly danced at all. I will point out four, and you must stand up with at least two of them.” Darcy agreed to the condition. Elizabeth pointed the ladies out without pointing at them directly. She was impressed he had accepted her condition without hesitation. Mama had had the right of it when she insisted Elizabeth keep an open mind regarding the tall, handsome man next to her.
~~~~~~~/~~~~~~~
Jane was never happier for a set to end than she was when the last bars of the Boulanger sounded and her time with Mr Bingley was thankfully over. If she heard one more word from him extolling her beauty, she was sure she would have screamed.
“Miss Bennet, may I request a second set from you?” Bingley asked after he led her to the side near where her parents were standing.
“No, Mr Bingley, you may not. We have only just met, and I do not dance a second set with any man unless I am well acquainted with him. I do not care for the inference people would draw if I granted a man I only met this night a second set,” Jane refused.
Bingley was not used to being refused by any of his angels. Before he could respond, Miss Bennet had curtsied and had rejoined her parents.
“Charles, why did you allow Miss Bennet to refuse to dance a second set with you?” Miss Bingley hissed near his ear. “You must win her over. It is my…our path to the heights of society. To be connected to the Duke of Devonshire would fulfil all of our late mother’s dreams for us.”
Caroline Bingley was determined that one way or another Charles would marry Miss Bennet and that she would become a close connection of the Duke’s family.
There was nothing Bingley wanted more than to spend additional time with his angel at the assembly, but he knew not how, especially after she had flatly rejected the idea of a second set of dances. The next dance was forming, so Bingley collected Miss Elizabeth. As the dance began, he had to admit she was also very pretty, but she was not tall, willowy, or blonde, and her eyes were not a deep shade of blue. Worse, Bingley could tell she was far too intelligent for himself.
He looked across, and there was Darcy dancing with some unknown woman. Bingley almost fell over his own feet with the great shock of seeing his friend dancing with someone not of their own party.
Elizabeth saw her cousin was standing up with Prudence Long, who was one of the girls who was very seldom asked to dance. She hoped that seeing Mr Darcy dance with her would encourage other men to stand up with Pru. There was almost noconversation with Mr Bingley; it seemed that when he could not pontificate on a lady’s looks, he had little to say.
At the end of the dance, Bingley escorted Miss Elizabeth back to her parents. He had not gone far when Darcy called him to himself.
“Bingley, did you know that Miss Bennet is being courted by my cousin, Viscount Hilldale?” Darcy asked. “I had heard that as soon as he returns to England, which will be shortly, he will be proposing to her. I assure you he will not be well pleased if another man is importuning her. You should know that even though I did not realise I had family in the area, the Bennets are my cousins.”
