To think that he had been missing out on the company, properly chaperoned of course, of an intelligent and attractive lady for the last several weeks while he was nursing bruises inflicted by his cousin instead, made his realisation doubly painful.
Something of his thoughts must have shown on his face as Elizabeth asked, ‘Are you well, Mr Darcy?’
Recalled to the present he turned to her and smiled, albeit somewhat tentatively. ‘It has just been driven home to me how much of a fool I was,’ he said quietly. ‘I had not thought that there were any ladies who did not care for position or material things.’
‘You are surprised by Jane. What were you expecting?’
‘Before yesterday, I only saw her the once at that assembly at Meryton when she danced with my friend. During the brief time I spent at Netherfield, I had very contradictory reports about your sister.
Elizabeth grinned at him. ‘Let me guess,’ she said as she raised her clasped hand to her chin and lowered her voice. ‘She is an angel sent from heaven to bring joy to the world. Her beauty and sweetness are unmatched by any other woman, and I cannot imagine my life without her.’ Her expression took on a sour and scowling demeanour. ‘She is a mercenary spawn from hell. That chit is only interested in my brother for his fortune. Miss Bennet does not care a pin for dear, sweet Charles, but if he offered for her, I wager that Mrs Bennet would not allow her to reject his suit.’
Lizzy’s expression went back to amusement. ‘How close was I?’
‘You were just about perfect,’ Darcy applauded with a laugh. ‘In both cases. The stage is poorer for not having you grace its boards. You have a remarkable gift.’
‘For acting or for seeing the truth?’
Slightly taken aback by the question, Darcy took a moment before he answered. ‘You have a gift for recognising and portraying the truth,’ he said, inclining his head in respect.
Elizabeth returned the gesture. ‘Well said, Mr Darcy. You do have a way with words when you take the trouble.’
They became so engrossed in their conversation that neither noticed that Mary and Fitzwilliam also became lost in their own world.
Mrs Gardiner sat back in her chair and sipped her tea while she watched the three couples which seemed to be forming before her eyes.
~T~
22Conversations
Charles Bingley enjoyed a quiet breakfast undisturbed by chatter, as his only company was his brother-in-law, who was as usual more interested in his food than conversation.
Mrs Hurst was indisposed due to her delicate condition and Miss Bingley had claimed to have a headache. The headache had been brought on the previous evening when Caroline perused the gossip section of the newspaper.
Her initial reaction was to laugh at the buffoons who had made such fools of themselves until she worked out that the article referred to herself and Mr Darcy. While under normal circumstances she would have been delighted to see her name, or at least her initials, mentioned in an article connected with Mr Darcy, the snippet she read portrayed both of them in a humiliating light.
When she had related her outrageous experiences in Hertfordshire to Miss Grantly, she had expected society to condemn the actions of those country mushrooms and show sympathy and support for herself and Mr Darcy for being used so very ill. Instead, the story had the potential to make her the laughingstock of London
Claiming a headache, she removed herself to her rooms with the offending article, where she remained well into the morning to plan how to counteract this potential fiasco.
Mr Bingley, not having seen the gossip pages, was enjoying a quiet and leisurely meal until the butler delivered a letter from his uncle in Scarborough, demanding his urgent attendance to discuss an issue with the Bingley business.
‘Damn,’ Bingley exclaimed, unconcerned about his language since only Hurst was present.
Since such expressions rarely passed Bingley’s lips, Hurst looked up from his devilled kidneys and asked, ‘Is something the matter?’
‘Yes. Uncle Arthur needs my help in smoothing over a dispute which is threatening to get out of hand.’
‘So, he is sending for the one person in the family who can charm just about anyone,’ Hurst asked with an amused grin. He was aware that most members of the Bingley family were similar in nature to Caroline, which was why the senior Bingleys were prepared to recompense Charles quite handsomely for his talent to smooth the waters or ruffled feathers.
‘I am afraid that is the case. But I had planned to see Darcy today to find out where to find Miss Bennet.
‘So, you are still pining after that particular angel,’ Hurst commented with a shake of his head. ‘You know that Caroline will never allow you to marry her, even if the lady should prove willing.’
‘We were most cruelly separated and despite that, I cannot tear her from my heart. I have come to believe in the saying that absence makes the heart grow fonder. Since it is happening to me, I can only presume that Miss Bennet must be similarly affected.’
‘What will you do?’
Bingley stared at the missive as if it were a particularly repugnant reptile but after a minute his shoulders slumped, and he sighed. ‘I promised Uncle Arthur to come when he called. I suppose that another week or two of separation will only inflame our love even more. I will send a note to Darcy and if you could inform my sisters of the reason for my absence, I would be much obliged.’
