Jane felt she should at least match his courtesy. “Mr Darcy, I thank you for your assistance.”
She tried to think of something else to say, but nothing came to mind. What other subject could she broach?
“Miss Bennet. Miss Taylor. May I have the privilege of helping you down? Mr Chamberlain and I must examine the carriage.”
Unsure how to react, she simply reached out and accepted his hand. The most basic rules of courtesy demanded he offer assistance, and the same confounded rules demanded she accept; the entire exchange was predetermined.
Once Jane stood on the ground, Mr Darcy said softly, “Are you well, Miss Bennet? I know from experience that such accidents can leave one dizzy. I would not wish you to repeat the lesson that taught me, as you will not even have the dubious pleasure of my cousin Fitzwilliam to tease you about it.”
Jane stared at him, wondering where this teasing man had come from, but eventually gave up.
“I am quite well. I… I thank you, sir.”
As always, following Aunt Gardiner’s advice was never a bad idea.
Jane, when in doubt, always fall back on good manners. ‘Tis far better to be disappointed that you did not deliver a well-deserved setdown or could not manage to carry a proper grudge, than to repent that you have been unkind without cause.
Jane and Lizzy had perfected the art of looking at their mother with apparently rapt attention whilst listening to their aunt in their mind’s eyes, before their tenth birthdays. Jane found the vision as comforting at two-and-twenty as at two-and-ten.
Mr Darcy ensured her stability before releasing her hand, then reached within to hand down the young maid with the same concern and civility, while Jane watched in confusion.
“Miss Taylor, are you well? As I told Miss Bennet, sometimes this sort of accident makes people dizzy.”
The young maid was not accustomed to speaking with gentlemen—particularly gentlemen whose boots cost more thanher yearly wages. She stared at her feet and murmured, “I am well, sir. Miss Bennet saw to my comfort.”
Jane moved closer to Ellen; the girl was shivering slightly. She glanced up at her trunk, wondering if it would be safe to retrieve a shawl. Before she could say anything, she was forestalled by the most confusing man in England.
“Miss Taylor, you are shivering. It is common when you have suffered shock or blood loss. May I?”
Neither Miss Taylor nor Miss Bennet had the vaguest idea what he was proposing, so they were surprised when he removed his greatcoat and wrapped it around the young maid.
As she stood wide-eyed, Mr Darcy said gently, “Miss Bennet, I believe it is for you to button this up, and then I suggest you ladies sit on that fallen log in the sun, while Mr Chamberlain and I examine your coach.”
By then, Jane had no idea how to react. She expected him to remount his horse and leave at once, though why he was on the road to Netherfield when Mr Bingley was in London was anybody’s guess. She supposed a man in such humour would want to kill some birds, or engage in some other manly pursuit that did not involve chasing females across a ballroom; but why not go to his own estate?
In some ways, Jane knew she ought to apologise for her ill manners at the ball, but for the first time in her life, she simply did not have it in her to be polite or think the best of someone. For the moment, she was relieved that the fit of temper Lizzy long expected would be delayed yet again.She did not look forward to it.
She followed the gentleman’s suggestion. Even if he was impolite, he was at least not stupid. She fastened his greatcoat about Ellen, wrapped a protective arm around the young woman, and led her to the log. They were nearly the same age, yet of such different stations, they had held no trueconversation. It was simply not done, and Jane sometimes wondered why. Considering how poor her relations were with her peers and superiors; she might be better off making friends among the servant class. Ellen was close to her sister Lizzy’s age, and Jane had enjoyed her company when she allowed herself to do so.
Jane studied her companion. “Are you well, Ellen?”
“Yes, Miss Bennet.”
They seated themselves on the log and watched the two men circle the coach to examine it. Had Jane been capable of greater surprise, she would have been shocked when Mr Darcy turned, seized the axle with both hands, and slid beneath it. Mr Chamberlain did likewise from the side, and they inspected the undercarriage for a few minutes before emerging.
The men conversed quietly; the coachman saw to the horses tied to a tree, and Mr Darcy returned to the ladies.
“Miss Bennet. Miss Taylor. A spring broke on your uncle’s carriage. It is not Chamberlain’s fault, nor anybody’s. Such things happen. It does however mean it will not leave this spot for at least a day.”
Jane stared at the offending coach for a moment. “Have no concern, sir. We are less than ten miles from Meryton. My three younger sisters are a bit silly and ridiculous, but Lizzy and I are not. We know every tenant and shopkeeper within miles. Someone will be along presently who can deliver us safely.”
Darcy was shocked that someone would be willing to sit by the roadside waiting for a good Samaritan merely to avoid his company. He realised he had dug his own hole, and it was time to dig himself out.
“Miss Bennet, pray forgive my interference in your affairs, but it would be most ungentlemanly for me to leave you here. May I suggest an alternative?”
Elizabeth would have been unable to resist the temptation to comment on his presence or lack of gentlemanly behaviour; but she was not Lizzy. She would be polite.
“You need not trouble yourself, sir. Go about your business. All shall be well.”
