She laughed.“I could.But I am enjoying this period of courtship.It is short, and it will only happen once.I want to savor it.”
“That is understandable, but you may continue to court after you have accepted him.”
“Hmm.”
Fitzwilliam rolled his eyes.
Elizabeth laughed.“Very well.I relent!”
Fitzwilliam shook his head in exasperation as he smiled at her.“It is about time you came to your senses.”
When they arrived at the park, Darcy quickly reclaimed Elizabeth.
“Dare I ask what you were discussing with my cousin?”
“I was asking him about Miss Covington.”
“Oh?”
Elizabeth gasped and stopped suddenly.“I forgot to ask about him about Mr.Covington.”
“Mr.Covington?”
“Yes.He paid a great deal of attention to Lady Clara and I wondered if Fitzwilliam organized it or if the gentleman did it of his own accord.”
Darcy looked thoughtful.“Fitz has never been a matchmaker, but I suppose it is not outside the realm of possibility.”
Elizabeth laughed at his turn of phrase.“I begin to think very little is outside the realm of possibility when it comes to your cousin.”
“So you think Jonathon Covington is pursuing Lady Clara?”
“I cannot be certain—it was only one day.But he did walk with her the entire afternoon, and I saw them talking privately together each time we stopped.”
“Hmm.”
“Is he a good man?”
“I could not say.I know no ill of him.His care for his sister is commendable.I know he has done everything he could to rebuild her dowry after their father’s mistakes.Not every man would have done so.”
“No, they would not.”She looked thoughtfully toward the trees.“He is a friend of the colonel’s?”
“Yes, they have known one another some time.”
“Do you think her parents would sanction the match if she were to choose him?”
“Why the sudden interest in my cousin’s affairs?”
“Answer the question, Fitzwilliam.”
“Very well.It would be an uphill battle.Mr.Covington is certainly not who they would have chosen for the only daughter of an earl.Her fortune is splendid.”
“Yes, she told me.Forty thousand pounds is hard to overlook.”She looked at Darcy searchingly.“Why do you suppose she is not yet married?She has a large dowry, good connections, and a pleasant personality.I do not understand.”
“I know she was pursued heavily by more than one gentleman her first season, but her father found them all wanting.”
“What was the problem?Were they lacking in connections?”
“One was too beneath the daughter of an earl.Another was too indebted and likely looking for a well-dowered bride to save him from his own mistakes.I cannot fault my uncle for refusing that one.”
