Mrs. Bennet’s face lit with renewed triumph. “Oh! Yes! Colonel Forster himself told me—the regiment is to come by tomorrow and remain in Meryton all winter. All winter, mind you! Until the spring roads improve. Such news!”
Lydia and Kitty all but squealed.
Mary allowed herself a not entirely elegant grimace, but one unmistakably full of moral disapproval.
Lydia clapped her hands. “Officers everywhere! We shall simply die of happiness.”
Mr. Bennet lowered his paper an inch, voice dry as dust. “A comforting plan. I presume you mean to die respectably?”
Mrs. Bennet scowled at him. “Do not be vulgar, Mr. Bennet! It will be most beneficial for the girls to have such society. Colonel Forster is a perfect gentleman,” she insisted, with the air of one making a pronouncement no one must dare question. “He expressed every expectation that I would bring you all to call.”
Mr. Bennet peered over his spectacles. “Expectation, eh? Remarkable. Did he say so before or after you decided it for him?”
Mr. Collins blinked and sat forward eagerly. “I, for one, find the presence of the military highly conducive to the moral improvement of youth. It promotes discipline, loyalty, and right conduct—when properly supervised, of course. Her Ladyship has often observed—”
Elizabeth could bear no more. She set down her cup, her voice deceptively mild. “Indeed, Mr. Collins, how reassuring to know Meryton will be safe under such moral guidance.”
Mr. Bennet chuckled quietly into his hand. “Cousin, you hardly know what you are talking about. Spare me, please.”
Mrs. Bennet ignored them both. “Well! Mark me, Elizabeth, do not scowl. You have done very well, four dances with Mr. Darcy. Let us hope he is not too proud to call.”
Elizabeth let out a slow breath, trying to hide her answering smile.
Mr. Bennet tapped his fingers on the arm of his chair, eyes twinkling over the rims of his spectacles. “Oh, Lizzy,” he said mildly, “I hope you realise you provided the chief entertainment of the evening.”
Elizabeth stiffened just slightly. “I cannot think what you mean, Papa.”
“Four dances with Mr. Darcy,” he replied, raising his brows. “In full public view. I suspect several of the matrons present fell ill with envy. Even your mother was rendered speechless for at least half a minute.”
Mrs. Bennet huffed, setting down her cup with a clatter. “Speechless with joy! I knew he admired her from the moment he asked for the second set. Mark my words, he is a man in earnest.”
Kitty giggled. “Four whole dances! He barely spoke to anyone else!”
“Mr. Darcy was... very civil.” Elizabeth tried to keep her tone even.
Her father smiled faintly. “Civil, was he? I found him surprisingly open. He even asked my permission to visit you before leaving for Pemberley.”
Elizabeth felt her face grow warm. “Papa!”
“I thought it a very proper request,” Mr. Bennet went on calmly. “Shows a seriousness not always in fashion these days. I told him I had no objection.”
Everyone at the table turned to look at her. Elizabeth’s fingers tightened around her napkin before she lifted her chin. “Mr. Darcy spoke of his intention, and I said I would be pleased to hear from him.”
Jane’s smile was quietly approving.
Mrs. Bennet let out an excited squeal and fluttered her hands in triumph. “Oh, Lizzy! Four dances and now a call! I knew it, I knew it!”
Jane, sweet and steady as always, offered their mother a gentle, reassuring smile.
Elizabeth looked heavenward, shaking her head with reluctant, helpless amusement.
“Since we are speaking of what is truly important,” Mr. Bennet began mildly, fingers steepled under his chin, “it wouldnot be unimportant to inform you all that I also had a rather instructive conversation last night with our neighbour, Mr. Bingley. As you no doubt observed, the young gentleman showed a very marked interest in our Jane, and was kind enough to claim her for two full sets—that is, four dances, as Mrs. Bennet so charmingly phrases it. I am convinced he is an honourable, well-intentioned young man. We will need to show him trust and proper courtesy, and not plague him with gossip, opinions, or foolish talk of militia officers and other trifles that would hardly interest a man considering marriage in our neighbourhood.”
Mrs. Bennet blinked rapidly, mouth forming a delighted ‘Oh’ before she remembered herself enough to let out a breathy little squeal. “Oh, Mr. Bennet! Indeed, indeed—I always said he admired her! And four dances!”
Jane, blushing at even the mention, tried to hush her mother with a quiet, “Please, Mama.”
Mr. Bennet’s gaze sobering slightly, swept to his younger daughters. “I beg you all to take my request seriously. Do not embarrass your sisters, or ruin their fair chance at an appropriate future, with thoughtless giggling or flirtations with passing officers. Their good marriages may well determine your own future comfort. I trust you will not disappoint me. Mrs. Bennet—see that it is so.”
