“Because theyfeelgood?”
“No,” she said in understanding. “Indeed, you are distrustful of pleasure. You think pleasure leads to the easy path, and you are inclined to do difficult and painful things because you think they are righteous.”
“Is this why you do things?” he said. “Because they feel good?”
“I…” She shrugged. “Sometimes, I suppose, but I am capable of knowing that feeling good has its consequences, and that if I don’t wish to pay the consequences, I must forgo the good feeling.”Well, I used to be this way, didn’t I? Am I still this way?
He nodded slowly.
“Sometimes, the consequences seem worth it,” she said.
“But even if there are minimal consequences, sometimes a thing is just wrong,” he said.
She opened her mouth to answer.
And there was another knock at the door.
CHAPTER TEN
ELIZABETH TURNED INhorror. If she were to be caught in Mr. Darcy’s bedchamber, it would be disastrous.
Mr. Darcy muttered, “Whoever could that be?” and went to the door. Holding it closed, he called, “Who is it?”
“It’s Mr. Nettles, sir,” said the voice of one of the footmen on the other side of the door. “I’ve a letter for you.”
“Oh,” said Mr. Darcy. He nodded for Elizabeth to step out of sight of the doorway, and she did so. Now, concealed, she couldn’t see the door open, but she heard it. She heard Mr. Darcy thanking him, and then saying to wait a moment, shutting the door, walking to find his purse out on the writing desk, getting a coin, and then going back to open the door and giving it to the footman. Then, he shut the door again. “It’s all right, Elizabeth,” he said as he came back into view.
She stepped out into the middle of the room as he opened the letter that had been given him.
He was startled.
“What?” she said.
“It’s from Larilane,” he said. “He’s here.”
“Here?” she said.
“Yes, he wants me to meet him out on the road in front of the house, right now.”
Elizabeth was stunned. “Well, I’m coming with you.”
He cleared his throat, and then nodded. “All right. I need to dress. You meet me at the side door at the bottom of the east wing. No one will see us there. We can walk down the drive under the cover of darkness.”
Except it was only just now growing dark at this time of June.
Still, Elizabeth thought it was a good plan.
She left Mr. Darcy to dress and went outside. He joined her only a few moments later, and he seemed to have rethought bringing her along, but she overrode all his protests, saying that she had questions for Larilane, and that she would not be put off them.
Mr. Darcy eventually stopped voicing the protests.
They walked in silence, all the way down the drive in front of Barralds, down to the road below, where a carriage was standing.
Mr. Darcy went straight to it and rapped upon the door, which opened.
The man inside looked out and his gaze alighted on her, and his expression went tender. “Oh,” he said. “You’ve brought her. Matilda’s girl.”
“Vicomte,” said Darcy, confirming that this was Larilane. “What is the meaning of this?”
