“Catherine, where are you going, my girl?”
“We are going to my bedchamber, Papa, to study the latest fashions.” She held up the magazine as proof.
“And what of your sister? Who is to serve as her chaperone if not you?”
Kitty and Georgiana exchanged a look.
“I beg your pardon, sir. I forgot myself.”
His gaze rested upon both girls.
“Mr. Allen will be visiting us for the next month, and I expect that one or both of you will remain in the room with Lizzy to lend them countenance. If they walk farther than the rose garden, you will follow behind them.”
He turned to the window on the far side of his study.
“I see that they are returning now. Seat yourselves at the far end of the room to provide them a semblance of privacy, and do not stare at them. You may occupy yourselves with your woman’s journal instead.”
He raised his brows. “Very well. Run along with you.”
Elizabeth and Mr. Allen walked to the hermitage and then turned back to the house, for the coolness of the autumn day made it uncomfortable to remain outdoors for long.
“Miss Bennet, at the risk of being told that the matter is none of my concern, I wish to know how you fare. Were you much injured by Darcy’s prideful remarks? I apologize that I was unable to turn the subject last evening. I am afraid the conversation got away from all of us.”
Elizabeth raised her eyes, relief on her face.
“Sir, I am glad that you raised the matter. I wish to thank you for defending my family, though you had never met them. I admit that I was injured, for I have known Mr. Darcy and his sister for several months and believed that we were friends. It pained me to hear his opinion, yet it was no more than I have believed myself.”
Both her voice and her expression conveyed her earnestness.
“Mr. Darcy indicated that gentlemen of your position and rank would not connect themselves with a woman of my station, yet you have come to pay me a call. I had expected never to see you again, believing that you held the same opinion as Mr. Darcy.”
Mr. Allen smiled kindly.
“Miss Elizabeth, there is a difference between Mr. Darcy and me. He is the grandson of an earl, while I am the son of a squire. I hold no lofty aspirations for marriage. My parents are happily married, and my only wish is to be as happily married as they are and to establish a loving home for my children.”
She listened to every word he spoke, and when he finished, she was smiling.
“Miss Bennet, we met only yesterday, yet I am charmed by your open manner and your expressive eyes. I should like to know you better. Perhaps we may discover that we suit one another. Would you permit me to visit you with that purpose in mind?”
Her eyes brightened, and her heart quickened.
“Yes, sir. I would like that very much.”
He took her hand.
“Miss Bennet, I confess that I believed there was an understanding between you and Mr. Darcy. I thought I saw it in his eyes and in your response to him.”
Her eyes lowered.
“I will not dissemble with you, sir. I have no wish to mislead you. I do not know how it came to be so, for Mr. Darcy can be very direct and at times unpleasant; nonetheless, he has captured myaffections. I have diligently attempted to guard my heart against him, knowing that nothing could ever grow between us. In spite of myself, I have fallen for him.”
“But you refused his offer of marriage, ma’am?”
She raised her eyes to meet his.
“Yes, sir, I did, for I cannot believe that we could ever be happy. I shall never be good enough for him or for his family. You heard him yourself. A connection between us would be regarded as a degradation by him. Mr. Allen, I believe that time heals all things, and I believe that a woman possesses enough love in her heart to find happiness with another and, in time, to love him more deeply than a man she can never truly have. Do you understand what I am saying, sir?”
He was smiling.
