Georgiana gasped when she understood his meaning, even as his mother’s grin grew wider. “Are you proposing what I believe you are?”
“The marriage license is in my chambers, Mother. There is no restriction on when Elizabeth and I can marry.”
Mrs. Darcy laughed and rose, kissing his cheek. “No, but you must persuade Mrs. Bennet to go along with your mad scheme.”
“Leave that to me.”
“Very well,” said Mrs. Darcy
She extended a hand to Georgiana, who accepted, though not without astonishment, and the two ladies retreated from the room. Darcy did not even need to glance at Bingley to understand his friend’s delighted amusement at Darcy’s sudden determination.
“The only question, my friend, is whether I should alert Caroline to your impending nuptials.”
Darcy considered this. “Do you suppose she will wish to witness them?”
“Perhaps not,” agreed Bingley. “To leave her here by herself without a word. . . If you wish me to do so, I shall, but I am not comfortable with it.”
“Then you may put it to Miss Bingley,” said Darcy. “If she is willing, I have no objection to her presence. But she is not to do anything to disrupt our celebration.”
“Of course not,” agreed Bingley.
In the end, Miss Bingley opted against attending, much to Darcy’s relief. While he did not think she would be so crass as to say anything she should not, or even to stand up in the church to voice her objections, she must understand that she had pushed Darcy with her behavior that morning.
“I believe she was more resigned than anything,” reported Bingley when they were waiting for the ladies to rejoin them. “Caroline must have known there was little chance of persuading you, yet she could not quite allow the dream to die.”
“It is well that she saw sense,” replied Darcy.
“Bingley offered him an effervescent grin. “Perhaps it is now unnecessary to marry with such haste.”
“If it is haste,” replied a wry Darcy, “then I shudder to consider what it might be if we were to drag our heels. Elizabeth and I have been engaged for more than a year now.”
“Yes, I can well imagine your impatience.”
There was no reason to further comment on the subject, so Darcy turned his attention back to Bingley. “Your sister, Bingley—has she had any interest from any man of society?”
The exasperation in Bingley’s features was unmistakable. “There have been a few, for Caroline’s dowry is substantial and she is not without virtues. Caroline insists she is to marry in the first circles and will not consider a man who does not possess the standing she wishes to obtain.”
Darcy shook his head. “If you will pardon my saying it, those she would like to impress will not consider her, and the men who would marry her for her dowry have pressing reasons to push for a union they would otherwise not consider.”
“Well do I know it,” replied Bingley, shaking his head. “With this latest failure, I hope she will be more reasonable, though I cannot say that I expect it.”
Choosing his words carefully, Darcy said: “You know something of my disinclination for your sister’s society, Bingley, but if she will accept less than she desires, an association with Elizabeth and me may lead to increased opportunities for a marriage with a man of a certain level.”
“With your new standing,” agreed Bingley, “many would look on her association with you as a point in her favor.”
“Which will only improve her eligibility if you are serious about Miss Bennet.”
The dreamy look Bingley assumed at the mention of Darcy’s future sister was not at all unexpected, for it was so very much like Bingley. “That is yet uncertain, but I am not unwilling to deepen our acquaintance.”
“Then perhaps you should make this point with your sister when the opportunity presents itself. So long as Miss Bingley adheres to restraint, Elizabeth and I will associate with her.”
“Thank you, my friend,” said Bingley. “I am aware of your true feelings for her.”
To Darcy, it did not signify. “Not at all, Bingley. In accepting your sister into our circle of friends, it will help her in life, and it is no sacrifice on our part.”
“And her future husband does not need to know that you are not bosom friends!”
The friends laughed together, Darcy agreeing it was so. To own the truth, he did not feel as if he were being magnanimous about Bingley’s sister, for what he told Bingley was nothing but the truth. Should she marry, she would be less of a burden to Bingley and less of a distraction to Darcy. That was the important consideration.
