“It is also true that your mother spread rumours about Jane’s engagement,” Mrs Gardiner added. “That is not something I approve of either. Furthermore, I doubt Mr Darcy was the only culprit. Mr Bingley’s sisters…I am certain they did not welcome the idea of Jane marrying their brother.”
“I cannot absolve him…I simply cannot, for we are not his inferiors, and even if we were, he has no right to disdain us. The most deplorable character trait is the inability to respect others, regardless of rank, wealth, or intellect.”
“I concur.” Mrs Gardiner gently prodded her, “Pray, do tell me of another fault you find in him.”
“He is excessively proud and prejudiced.”
“Yes, we just discussed that. Can you name any more?”
“His haughtiness…”
“Which, my dear, is but another facet of his pride, much akin to conceit.”
“But how would I know about other shortcomings? I am not sufficiently acquainted with him—he might have many more.”
“Exactly my point. Our judgments are confined to what wepresentlyknow about him. We also know that he is unfailingly honest, a trait I do not entirely admire in the context he used in Kent. Still, it has an important merit in marriage. That gentleman will never dissemble with you.”
“He would rather wound me with his words than utter a falsehood,” Elizabeth responded, her cheeks flushed with innocence as they spoke about him as her future husband.
“Yet it is a far lesser fault than dishonesty, deceit, or duplicity. When he gazes into your eyes, you will see unwavering candour. He has cared for his sister as only a parent would. At an age when most of his peers revel in youthful pleasures, he manages one of Derbyshire’s largest estates. Lastly, even though you harboured huge resentment in Kent because of Jane,you cannot deny that he was a loyal friend to Mr Bingley. He considered Jane a fortune hunter and acted according to his conscience. His actions were not against your family but in defence of his friend. And, above all else, the greatest virtue I find in Mr Darcy is that he loves you, and I assure you that you are not easy to love!”
“Why do you regard that as a virtue?”
Mrs Gardiner and Jane looked at her with something akin to pity, and at last, Elizabeth smiled. “Do you pity me?”
“Yes,” both ladies said simultaneously, laughing.
“Why?” Elizabeth asked.
“Because you are exceedingly intelligent yet seemingly incapable of understanding this man’s true character and the profoundness of his feelings,” her aunt answered. “He loves you, and I assure you that falling in love with you is not easy. I do not foresee many men willing to make you their bride.”
“Mr Collins attempted it!” Elizabeth replied in jest, though she looked to her aunt for an explanation.
“Indeed, but he was ignorant of your true self. He was pompous and narrow-minded, assuming he could secure any woman’s hand without concern for future marital happiness. He sought a housekeeper, believing any woman would do.”
“What can I say? Regarding Mr Collins, you have seen it right,” Elizabeth accepted.
“While Mr Darcy wanted you—the woman he has come to know and appreciate. He did not fear your intelligence or independence but deemed those traits essential to his happiness—”
She halted abruptly as Elizabeth’s tears began to flow unexpectedly. However, her niece was not looking for sympathy; she yearned for the unvarnished truth.
“You must change and strive to prompt a change in him, and then…marry the man. Regardless of your convictions,regardless of what ideas your dear father has sown in your mind, distinctions exist within our society. A marriage proposal from the master of Pemberley is a significant honour, believe me! I spent my early years but a few miles from that place, and I speak from experience. Your father may be a gentleman, but Mr Darcy and his family belong to a different sphere. Even the fact that he is acquainted with Mr Bingley is in his favour, as the Bingleys are the offspring of men of trade, nothing more.”
“Oh! You are quite capable of twisting everything to suit your own argument,” Elizabeth said with a trace of humour that hinted she was moving towards understanding andsomewisdom.
“Perhaps I am. But look attentively at your situation. Are you free of prejudices? You judged Mr Darcy too quickly and with too little information. Overcome your prejudices and make him correct his pride.”
“Beyond pride, past prejudice,” Jane said with a smile at her sister, attempting to conclude the conversation on a meaningful note.
Mrs Gardiner nodded and passed her younger niece a handkerchief. “Now, my dear, we must prepare you to look like a queen and request that your uncle escort us to Covent Garden,” she said, proving that she already knew the plan and that it didnot please Elizabeth.
“I cannot do that!” she exclaimed. “It is like a plot that Mother might conceive!”
“Absolutely not. This man has strong feelings for you, and he has proposed. You love him, and you rejected his offer in a grievous error. You have since reconsidered your sentiments, and now is the time to convey them.”
“Even if his family want him to marry another lady?”
“My dear, Mr Darcy is not a man who follows advice or orders. There is no other lady in his heart. If he is thinking at all of marriage, it is solely to forget the woman who refused him.”
