“Do you still love her?” Darcy answered with a question of his own.
“Like a madman!”
And both cousins sighed heavily—with sorrow, frustration, and regret that such clarity had taken six months to arrive.
“But Miss Bennet? What of her? Do you know anything of her?” Bingley asked again, almost frantic.
“I do not know, my friend, and I do not wish to offer any more ill-advised opinion. All I can offer is one final piece of advice if you are willing…”
Poor Bingley smiled and nodded, unable to speak.
“Go to Netherfield. Do you still have the house?”
He nodded again.
“Then do not hesitate. Go. It is best you see for yourself how matters stand. If you still love one another, then time has not been lost. And if not…at least you may part with grace and bring a gentle end to what was once a lovely beginning.”
Chapter 35
Half an hour after breakfast, the entire party was prepared for their first walk in Bath, ready to explore the charming city and to drink the waters—the main purpose of the visit, at least for some.
“Are you certain they have arrived?” Elizabeth murmured to her aunt.
“Yes, my dear. I can scarcely imagine a more fitting occasion for the two of you to meet, in this charming city where you do not have shared memories,” Mrs Gardiner replied.
Elizabeth’s smile bore a striking resemblance to her father’s, prompting Mrs Gardiner to whisper, “Refrain from appearing so sardonic! Stop smiling in your father’s fashion, particularly when we encounter the Darcys. You cannot fault him for arrogance if you greet him with such an expression.”
“Do not scold me. It seems hypocritical of me to blame my mother for scheming all day long when I find myself at the heart of such a plot, to which I have given my full consent.”
“Do you expect me to say something to ease your conscience?” Mrs Gardiner spoke with a smile, watching her closely.
Elizabeth sighed, exhibiting an even brighter smile in return that showed the real situation, her heart burning from expectation and hope, yet she continued in a rather stern voice, “It is the clearest proof that one ought not to judge anyone else.”
“Not even Mr Darcy,” her aunt added, and Elizabeth gave a silent nod.
“Everyone sometimes attends gatherings they find disagreeable, Lizzy,” Mrs Gardiner said. “My dearest friend, Esther, has a family I find insufferable. Her father-in-law is impertinent, and her mother has the manners of a servant. Stop imagining an ideal world populated by flawless individuals. You are not without faults, Jane is not without faults…none of us are without imperfections. Accept theirs, and they will accept yours.”
Elizabeth sighed again, lost in thought as she contemplated her aunt’s words. She returned to the present when a chorus of joyful voices surrounded her. Lady Oakham and Miss Darcy met them with broad smiles, relishing their introduction to the Gardiners’ children, who quickly departed with their nanny to drink the waters.
“You have charming children,” Miss Darcy remarked, speaking to Mr and Mrs Gardiner, then turned to Mary, inviting her to enter the Pump Room.
Elizabeth looked at them in surprise, expecting Miss Darcy to accompany her instead. Yet Lady Oakham’s intentions became apparent when Colonel Fitzwilliam and Mr Darcy approached. Before she realised what had unfolded, the colonel vanished with her uncle, and Lady Oakham took Mrs Gardiner by the arm, leaving her facing a smiling Mr Darcy. Their aunts’manoeuvrings had been so transparent that they had failed to deceive either of them.
“Oh!” Elizabeth exclaimed gloomily. Only a second earlier, her heart had been full of joy at meeting him. Still, seeing everybody disappearing around them, she feared that he might recall specific unpleasant schemes in Hertfordshire involving her mother. But Mr Darcy’s smile was only amused, devoid of any trace of anger.
“You appear rather disconcerted, Miss Elizabeth,” he remarked.
“I am. We are now alone, having been in the midst of a crowd mere seconds ago.”
“Yes, the ladies of my family delight in organising events to suit their own ends. We are powerless in the face of Lady Oakham’s designs. But why were you wearing that expression earlier?”
Elizabeth realised that he must have observed her long before their encounter, and she remembered her conversation with her aunt.
“My aunt was scolding me,” she confessed with a joyous transformation of her mood, nearly beyond her control.
“Oh, I was unaware that anyone in the world dares to chastise you,” he remarked, and she glanced at him from beneath her parasol to see his face. Yet, he continued to wear a smile.
“It seems I have quite a notorious reputation.”
