Elizabeth did as she asked, and after the story was done, Jane hugged her for so long that she was sure she was going to fall asleep in her arms.“He said he would marry you?” Jane asked.
“Yes. But I do not want that. You know how I feel about him — ” Elizabeth stopped, an unfamiliar tug gripping at her heart. Suddenly, she remembered the feel of her hands on his muscular chest. And the way he had looked so deeply into her eyes. It was altogether too confusing to discuss with her sister. She could not make it take any kind of sensible form, even in her own thoughts.
Elizabeth and Jane took a moment to change out of their gowns and into their nightdresses. Soon, the tea arrived, and Jane served her a cup. If the steaming liquid did little to calm her nerves, it was at least soothing to her stomach, which had been in knots since the fateful incident. Jane poured herself a cup and rejoined her on the edge of the bed. Elizabeth tucked her feet up under her and sipped slowly on her tea. Jane waited, sipping in silence as well until Elizabeth was ready to talk.
She sighed heavily before she started in.“Is my life over, Jane? I cannot help but think that this is the end of me, all my dreams for the future. How can it all be gone in the space of a few hours?”
“Mr Darcy is not an unkind man. And he is very well off. Surely life with him will not be as bad as you fear.”
“That is not the point. Indeed, his affluence is not wholly a benefit. It is because of his wealth that he thinks he can look down on others and treat them as if they are less valuable than himself. Mr Darcy is not only proud and cold, but thoroughly dull as well. I cannot think how awful it will be to face him tomorrow.”
“Perhaps there is no need for you to face him in the morning. Papa can handle things, surely?” Jane finished her tea and set the cup aside. Elizabeth finished hers as well and handed the empty cup to Jane. Wishing she could curl up and disappear, Elizabeth brought her bare feet up onto the bed and wrapped her arms around her knees. But simply disappearing was not as easy as all that.
“I must do something, Jane. There must be a way to prove our innocence. I cannot live with a man like Mr Darcy as my husband for the rest of my life. I cannot!” Elizabeth felt the tears welling once more, but blinked them back. No more tears, for tears could solve nothing.
Her resolution was badly tested by Jane’s gently sympathy, which came dangerously close to unlocking the flood. Saying little, Jane helped her get under the covers and tucked her in as though she were a child. She placed a hand on Elizabeth’s shoulder.“It will be well, Lizzy,” she whispered. “I am certain of it.” With that, she climbed into the far side of the bed and blew out the candle.
Long after Jane’s breathing had evened out into sleep, Elizabeth lay awake, thinking over the strange turn the night had taken. If only Mr Wickham had been there. If only he had asked her to dance as he said he would. At the time the note had been delivered, surely they would have been dancing together, laughing and talking without a care in the world.
Her mind swirled around the events of the night. Mr Darcy had been so aloof and judgemental before their fateful meeting. Why had he come to the library? Had he followed her there? And who was the Mrs X of the note? It seemed past all understanding.
Even given Mr Darcy’s presence in the library, why had he fallen? He was not normally a clumsy man, and the floor of the library was smooth and even, without so much as a seam between floorboards to trip over. And why had everyone come into the library so quickly, in time to see them compromised? The more she thought things through, the more Elizabeth felt certain that something was wrong. Their ill luck did not seem like an accident. Absurd as it sounded, it felt intentional. She did not think it was merely her displeasure at the outcome that had her believing someone was behind the whole incident. But who — and why?
Chapter 4
“I cannot believe this has happened! In my brother’s house, and at his very first ball. It is an outrage!” Caroline Bingley hissed as they went back into the grand salon.“I would gamble everything I have that she planned the whole thing to get her clutches into you.”
Darcy raised an eyebrow. No doubt Miss Bingley’s rather cynical outlook was shaped by her own aims. He suspected it was a prudent sense of caution, not morals, that had kept Miss Bingley from making an attempt of the kind herself.“It is a sin to gamble,” Darcy replied coolly. “In any case, Miss Elizabeth Bennet did nothing of the kind. As I said before, it was an accident.”
“How do you know she did not plan to catch you out? True, the fall might have been an accident, but what was Miss Elizabeth Bennet doing in the library alone?” Caroline’s face twisted into a scowl that was remarkably unbecoming, not to mention rather less than ladylike.“It is not fair that you should have to lower yourself and your standards to come to her aid. It was her fault that she put herself in such an improper position in the first place.”
“She was browsing the bookshelves. What could be a more harmless pursuit?” Darcy argued. It was not typically his habit to answer anyone back. But Miss Bingley’s attitude irked him. He would not allow her to besmirch Elizabeth’s character without coming to her aid.
Miss Bingley stopped as they reached the far end of the ballroom.“You make it sound as though you are happy about the arrangement.” She looked out over the crowd. When he said nothing against the sentiment, she snapped her head up, levelling a piercing gaze at him.“Are you?”
Darcy was not about to admit anything of his true feelings to her.“Of course not. I would never wish to take part in such a spectacle.”
“Then you plan to fight it? What will you say to Mr Bennet to release you from that ridiculous promise?”
Darcy turned slowly, his face grim.“I will not. I meant every word of what I said. Tomorrow, I will go and officially ask for Miss Elizabeth Bennet’s hand.”
Miss Bingley’s scowl turned even more ugly, but she said not another word to him. Her true colours had been shown, and it was as though she knew it. She simply turned and walked away. Darcy could not regret her absence. It was a relief to be left alone with his thoughts.
After such an event, the ball could hardly proceed as normal. All anyone could talk about was the compromise and the engagement. The final touch to the evening’s absurdities was given by Mr Collins, who, having been wandering around the halls looking for Elizabeth, had missed the Bennet’s carriage. In the end, he had departed nearly an hour after the incident ensued, with the Lucases. Lady Lucas told him of the events that had left him stranded at Netherfield, and Charlotte Lucas had arranged for him to join their carriage. Mr Collins was most shocked and refused to look at Darcy as he departed the mansion. Apparently, there must be a silver lining to even the most threatening clouds, if such a disastrous evening could at least free him of the man’s obsequious attentions.
Caroline Bingley had been teasing and angry by turns all evening. Her attempt to take him to task after Elizabeth and her family had departed only hardened his resolve. Nor would Bingley would hear of anyone speaking against Elizabeth or any of the Bennet family. Darcy could not help but smile at seeing his friend’s determination. Bingley was sometimes too easy-going, too persuadable. It spoke well for his future happiness that he knew when to hold firm. He even corrected Miss Bingley sharply when she tried to bring the subject up again.
When the Netherfield party gathered together after the last guests had departed, all looked shaken by the evening’s events. Miss Bingley was undoubtedly furious, though she had little reason to be. Darcy shook his head. He had thought well of her, once, if never well enough to justify her too-obvious hopes. That was all over now. Her callousness had forever shifted his estimation of her character. He suspected there would always be a coolness between them. From then on, he resolved not to be alone with Miss Bingley. What had happened was an accident, but even so, he would not leave Elizabeth with protection. The promise he had made in the library would become his solemn vow.
With a final, desperate look, Miss Bingley turned to him.“I do not understand why you should have to punish yourself when you did nothing wrong,” she said, sounding half frustrated and half pleading.
“Leave him be, Caroline,” Bingley had snapped.“Come with me to the study, Darcy.” They had stayed there for the rest of the night, drinking through Bingley’s best bottle of smuggled French brandy. Though it could not have been how Bingley wished to end the first ball in his new house, Darcy could not bring himself to reject his friend’s kindness. He did not think he could bear to see anyone else, and still less to be left alone with his thoughts.
“Perhaps we ought to speak of it,” Bingley said at last. “Though I hardly know whether I am expected to scold you or commiserate with you.”
“Both, perhaps, or neither,” Darcy allowed.
“I must confess, my friend, that I suspected you had feelings for Miss Elizabeth Bennet. But I did not realise that you had been so run away with your feelings that anything like this could happen,” Bingley said as they sat beside the hearth, sipping the mellow brandy.
