“I do not care what they want. I think it should be up to you and Mr Bingley to follow your own hearts,” Elizabeth said. “Do you like him?”
“I have an even greater respect for him after this evening. I do esteem him.” Jane said, then paused for a long while. Elizabeth could hear the smile in her voice when she spoke again. “I like him, yes.”
“That is good to hear, for I would pity the poor man otherwise. I think you are in great danger of making him fall madly in love with you, Jane,” Elizabeth said laughingly.
“I hate to think that I would ‘make’ him do anything,” Jane said. “Surely it is not right to use such forceful words.”
“Perhaps you are right. You know what a one I am for speaking nonsense. But I am happy for you. You and Mr Bingley would make such a fine pair. And how convenient it would be tocome and visit my dear sister, if you were to marry. To have you so near would make me happier than I ever thought possible.”
Even in the faint light of the moon, Elizabeth could tell her sister was blushing. “I am not at all sure that it is wise to start speaking of marriages. We only met the gentleman three days ago.” Jane lifted her chin and looked out the small window. “Besides, Mr Darcy might be interested in you. You may not live in the vicinity very long, for I believe you may be on the brink of finding a husband as well.”
Elizabeth laughed out loud. “Mr Darcy is not interested in me for any reason —” Elizabeth stopped short. She had thought to say that the only reason they had been invited to Netherfield was to see if Elizabeth was suitable for Mr Bingley. Mr Darcy had likely already reported to Miss Bingley and her older sister that that was far from the case. “Anyway, I do not think he is interested in me. He already has a fortune of his own and has no need of an estate by the sea. No, I do not think Mr Darcy will be persuaded to take an interest by my inheritance.”
Jane said little more on the subject, and they were soon home again. After greeting their family, they could finally go to bed.
Yet Elizabeth sat up late into the night, thinking over the question that Mr Darcy had posed to her earlier in the evening: what was she to do with the inheritance? If she wished, she could simply hold out for five years and collect it, without having to marry. And then she would be free to live, with no worries or cares, no one hurrying her to find a husband.
That was a good fate, surely. There was no reason to feel downcast — no reason to hope she might yet find the man she could love with all her heart.
Chapter 7
The following morning, their mother demanded a full report. Mrs Bennet could not have been more pleased with all she heard. To Elizabeth’s dismay, she was already planning a wedding. What remained to be seen was which of her daughters she had planned to have Mr Bingley.
With silent determination, Elizabeth resolved to convince her mother she was not a contender. When once convinced it was so, Mrs Bennet would lead the charge, and everyone would do their best to promote Jane’s chances with the man she already seemed to like so well. That would be capital. Much as Elizabeth respected Mr Bingley, she knew they were better suited as brother- and sister-in-law than as man and wife.
“I must interrupt your scheming for a moment, my dear. I have had some news this morning from my cousin in Kent.” Elizabeth’s father spoke up at the breakfast table, which was a rarity in and of itself. That he should share the contents of a letter with them all being present, even rarer. “He informs me he intends to come for a visit — a long one, it would seem. And so, I hope you have ordered a good supper this evening, my dear, for I expect he will arrive today.”
“Today? How very odd. I should think he would have had the manners to give us more time to prepare for his arrival.”
“He is a parson, my dear. He does not need anything too ostentatious. A few good meals and some good company will be all he requires.” Her father went back to reading his letters, making it perfectly clear he had nothing else to say on the subject.Elizabeth rather suspected that this was not truly the first her father had heard of Mr Collins’s intended visit, but only the first time he had deigned to inform her mother.
Her mother gave a disapproving laugh, and if she did not believe that was the only thing Mr Collins was coming for. “I’ll wager he is coming to look over his inheritance, that is what. He is a shrewd man, I suppose, coming to see the state of your father’s health, and judge how long he must wait before claiming Longbourn for his own, as though he had any right to it.” She paused for a moment, her lower lip quivering. “And he will waste no time throwing us out of the house, I am sure of it, before your father is even cold in his grave.”
“Do not upset yourself, Mama. I am sure he only comes to renew our familial acquaintance. I do not believe any of us girls have ever laid eyes on the gentleman.” Jane reached over to their mother’s hand and gave it a comforting pat.
“No indeed, none of us have ever seen him except for your father, when he was but a sour-faced boy,” Mrs Bennet said, continuing to pout. “I tell you all, an entail is an evil thing which should be outlawed by the government!”
“Mama, there is nothing to be done,” Elizabeth said. Though she and Jane had attempted to explain the nature of an entail to their mother many times, the effort had proven entirely fruitless. Mrs Bennet could not be convinced of what she did not wish to understand.
“It is just as well that you have an inheritance of your own now, Lizzy. When he does throw us out, remember your poormother and any of your sisters who are as yet unmarried when that dark day comes,” she wailed.
“Mama, please,” Jane exclaimed, looking at her father. “We need not fear any of that yet. Papa is the picture of health, are you not, Papa?”
“Indeed,” he replied, raising a brow at his flighty wife. “Though your mother seems bent on killing me off as quickly as possible.”
“That is not at all what I said or implied. But none of us are guaranteed tomorrow, and Mr Bennet is no exception. I am only glad that Jane and Elizabeth both have promising prospects, that is all,” she said grimly.
As might have been expected, the rest of breakfast had a pall cast over it. The girls left their places as quickly as they could and went about their tasks for the day.
Mr Collins arrived late that afternoon. Their mother called them all downstairs to greet their guest, telling them all to be on their best behaviour — though she added under her breath, “even if he has come to steal your home!”
Jane and Elizabeth exchanged long-suffering glances and stood up straight as the door opened and Mr Collins was revealed.
Elizabeth made an effort to keep from laughing when she saw him. Her cousin’s expression was impossibly comical — half haughty dignity, as though he thought himself above all he surveyed, and half utter obsequiousness. He stood, slightly stooped, on the front step and took off his black hat. “Mr Collins, at your service,” he said in a clipped tone. “I do hope my letter found you well in advance?”
Her father looked back and caught Elizabeth’s eye. His meaning was all too clear: he thought his young cousin a buffoon. “It arrived this morning. But please, come in.”
Mr Collins came in, though not before interfering with the servants’ efforts to have his baggage taken down from the coach and transferred to his room. At last, he turned his full attentions on his host. “It is so good of you to have me, Mr Bennet. I have long wanted to establish family relations between us. After my dear father’s passing, I did not see any reason to continue in the awkwardness of the past.”
