She grinned up at me as we descended the stairs to the kitchens, and I knew in that moment that Eurydice had not resented Orpheus for looking back at her as they walked out of the Underworld. If his smile had been anything like Kitty’s, she would have been thankful for a glimpse of it, regardless of her fate.
I felt something in my chest tighten, and I knew, for my own sake, I would have to limit myself to small doses of Kitty. After all, it had ended rather poorly for Eurydice.
The kitchens at Pemberley were Ruth’s domain and hadbeen for as long as I could remember. I always loved spending time there, sneaking gingerbread and hiding from houseguests, so the usual warmth of the stove and smell of dinner hanging in the air were comforting despite Kitty’s unnerving presence.
“Ruth!” Kitty exclaimed, hurrying across the kitchen to greet the cook with a hug.
The familiarity surprised me, even though I knew Kitty had visited before. I had never assumed she’d spent much time in the kitchen.
“I’m glad to see you’ve arrived safely,” Ruth said, pulling back to survey Kitty the way she always did me when I’d been away. No member of her household was wasting away on her watch. “I’ve set out all your favourites.”
She shepherded Kitty over to a table laid with a plate of bread and sliced meat. Beside it was a dish of small honey cakes and gingerbread rounds. Rather than start with the savoury portion of the meal, Kitty bit into a cake almost as soon as she sat down. Her hum of delight turned the tips of my ears red.
“It’s as good as I remember,” she told Ruth, who only beamed and thanked her.
It wasn’t often we were in need of supper at Pemberley, so this was later than Ruth would usually work. Strands of her dark hair, streaked with wisps of grey, were starting to escape from under her cap, and her eyes were shadowed with the weight of the day. I hoped we would not keep her up much longer. Despite her tiredness, she picked up a plate from theside and handed it to me with a wink. On it was another gingerbread round. Even though I had eaten a plateful earlier, I always had room for one more, and I savoured the warmth of the spices as I bit through the outer shell.
It was almost enough to settle me, until I once again caught sight of Kitty so at home in the kitchen I had grown up in. She fit the picture too neatly somehow, making it warmer and more compelling as she pulled Ruth into conversation. Her boundless enthusiasm was captivating, but I knew all too well the dangers of being taken hostage by beguiling girls.
Noiselessly setting my empty plate down beside the sink, I slipped out of the kitchen. It was entirely rude and certainly not what Elizabeth had in mind when she asked me to escort Kitty, but I could not bear it in there any longer. I needed to put some distance between myself and Kitty, and calm the flutters starting to whip around my chest. Her presence seemed as if it would only feed the flames of attraction, and I was keen not to let them develop into anything more substantial.
Chapter Two
A night of sleep managed to put Kitty Bennet from my mind, but when I made it downstairs for breakfast, she proved herself to be very real and very present. It was a Darcy family trait to awake slowly and with a certain level of irritability, but the Bennets had a rather different approach to mornings. Elizabeth met each one with a startling vitality, and Kitty, too, was already beaming at her sister across the table as they gossiped between bites of honey cake.
“Good morning, Georgiana,” my brother greeted me from the head of the table with a tone of relief in his voice, likely thankful to no longer be the sole subdued figure at the table.
I returned the greeting, extending it to Elizabeth and Kitty, and was grateful for the cup of tea Elizabeth pushedmy way. Darcy relied on coffee to chase away the lingering tendrils of sleep, but even when I heaped it full of cream and sugar, I couldn’t stand the taste. The way he drank multiple pitch-dark cups was bordering on criminal.
Ordinarily I forced myself to make conversation with Elizabeth in the morning, since she wouldn’t get much out of my brother until the coffee started to work, but I was relieved to find Kitty a far more willing conversation partner than I was. I was less pleased by her choice of conversation topic.
“I was so disappointed to have missed the ball,” she said, turned to try to include both Darcy and me in the conversation. It was thoughtful, but somewhat wasted. “Mother so desperately wanted me to attend, but that streak of bad weather was rotten luck in delaying the trip. I had to put up with days of her complaining about the lost opportunity to find a match.”
She pulled a face that chased a laugh from me, surprising both of us. It only succeeded in pulling her attention my way.
“Did you meet any suitors we can expect to come calling?” she asked.
I was entirely grateful I had already swallowed my latest mouthful of tea, or it would have risked choking a coughing fit from me.
“No,” I said, perhaps too quickly.
Elizabeth looked like she was about to provide context, but I caught her eye and quickly shook my head. I didn’t wish to get into a discussion of my dislike for assembled crowds over breakfast, especially not when Kitty clearly had no concerns with shining brightly amongst veritable strangers.
Before I could summon a suitable explanation, a footman approached the table with a tray of papers, and my attention was lost to the best part of breakfast: the delivery of the newspaper and the day’s incoming correspondence. The tray was set down beside Darcy as usual, but he passed over the newspaper without me having to ask, turning his attention to the small pile of envelopes.
It was yesterday evening’s newspaper, the trip from London not a quick one, but I coveted it all the same. The rich scent of ink and paper made it worth the dark smudges it left on my fingers and the headache I got from squinting to read the tiny, blurred text. I skipped the advertisements and sales notices and the gossipy article about a high-society wedding, instead focusing first on the newly published book list. I was pleased to see a new novel by Mrs. Sarah Green and made sure to commit it to memory to request it be purchased, certain Elizabeth would want to read it. I had just moved on to the paper’s recollection of the latest affairs in Parliament when Darcy’s voice won my attention.
“Your aunt once again requests your presence at Rosings Park,” he informed me, reading over a letter I could see in her foreboding, spiky script. “I am a poor influence on you, and she could have you married to a suitable match within the year to restore the good name of our family.”
Anyone who did not know my brother might think he was genuinely contemplating the request, but I could see the hint of a smile at the corner of his mouth. He mocked the suggestion in his airing of it, rather than considering it.
“Lady Catherine’s optimism is impressive,” I said, choosing my words carefully. She may not have been present, but I had been raised better than to directly insult my relatives, even if my aunt had been rather insufferable to Darcy since his marriage to Elizabeth. She deemed her too far below him. “If it is all the same, I would like to remain here, with my poor influence of a brother.”
His smile was overshadowed by Kitty’s laugh, punctuated by a particularly unladylike snort. She covered her mouth with her hand, but her eyes still showed her amusement.
“You’ll find that a full house at Pemberley is probably more similar to Meryton when we were all in residence than you might expect,” Elizabeth said to Kitty, not quite hiding her smile behind her teacup.
“So I see,” Kitty replied with a grin.
