Darcy huffed again.He felt he had done nothing but grumble and huff and sigh for the last two hours.He was like a horse in the stable, and Fitzwilliam the groom determined to break him.And just like the horse, everyone would be happier if he simply relented and accepted the inevitable.
“Very well.It will not be easy, but I will attempt it.”
Fitzwilliam brought his hands together for one jarring clap.“Excellent!It will be easier than you think, I am sure of it.You can be pleasant and witty when you choose to be.You simply need to choose to be so with Miss Bennet.”
Darcy nodded and looked out the darkened window.“What if I cannot?”he asked quietly, doubt creeping into his voice.“What if she does not come to care for me?”
Fitzwilliam squeezed his shoulder and said kindly, “She will.You know how to love well.Show her that, and she won’t be able to help it.”
“Are you certain?”
“I am.Miss Bennet is a warmhearted lady.She will respond to genuine affection.You just have to show it to her.”
Darcy nodded.He hated how unsure and faltering he felt.It was as if they were children again and Fitzwilliam was teaching him how to aim for a bird or reload his powder.When he finally quit fighting it, he enjoyed the reversion to their childhood roles.Fitz was older and wiser, and Darcy was eager to learn.It was refreshing.
“Let us practice.”
“What?”replied Darcy, aghast.
“Practice.You have admitted yourself that you are unskilled in conversing with ladies.”
“How will speaking with you improve my skills?”
“I will pretend to be a lady, of course!”
Darcy stared at his cousin with mounting dread.Colonel Fitzwilliam was enjoying this entirely too much and Darcy was in no mood to be his cousin’s entertainment.Finally, he rolled his eyes, sighed, and said, “How do we begin?”
“You are meeting her on a walk?”
“Yes.”
“Then we shall pretend we are meeting in the grove.”He moved to the window, then turned to stroll towards his cousin.“Mr.Darcy!Good morning,” said the colonel, his voice pitched unnaturally high.
Darcy cringed.“Good morning, Miss Bennet.”
“That will never do, Darcy!You must at least appear happy to see the lady.No one wants to look at that grumpy expression across the dinner table every night.”
“I am not as good a play-actor as you, Fitz.When I look at you, I see my cousin, not Miss Bennet.”
“You must use your imagination,” replied the colonel with a stern look.
Darcy sighed and rubbed his hand across his eyes.“Very well.Good morning, Miss Bennet.I hope you are feeling better.”
“I am quite well, thank you.”
Fitzwilliam stared at his cousin, waiting for Darcy to speak next.
“Uh, may I walk with you?”
“You may.”
They strolled the perimeter of Darcy’s chamber before Fitzwilliam turned to his cousin in exasperation.
“Really Darcy, it is no wonder the woman was not expecting your declaration!If you cannot speak to her, how is she to know you hold her in high regard?”
Darcy huffed.“I am not like you.I do not flirt with every woman under eighty and I do not have your way with words.”
“I am not suggesting you behave like me, but that you at least attempt to talk to the poor girl.She likely has no idea what to make of you.”
