“Pray, go on without me. I must finish my letter to Lydia that it may be dispatched with today’s post. I shall follow presently.”
When the letter was completed and sealed, Elizabeth glanced out the window. Jane and her admirer remained in the rose garden, moving scarcely at all, so intent were they upon one another. Elizabeth smiled to herself.
She put on her bonnet, took up a small basket and her shears, and joined them. Occupying herself with the trimming of spent blossoms, she left them to their conversation until at length Jane and Mr. Bingley drew near to the tea table.
Jane offered refreshment, which he accepted.
“I shall see to the tea tray,” Elizabeth said.
She withdrew and delayed as long as she dared, that her sister might enjoy a private conversation with her suitor. When at last she returned with the tray and began to set out the cups, she found she must steady herself, for what Mr. Bingley next said took her wholly by surprise. “Mr. Darcy and Miss Georgiana are to arrive this Friday and will remain with me until my ball in October.”
Elizabeth felt the warmth rise swiftly to her cheeks and was grateful that Mr. Bingley’s attention was wholly fixed upon Jane. She heard little of what followed.
She was to see Mr. Darcy again, and he would reside in the neighborhood for several months. The knowledge stirred her deeply, and she could scarcely contain her rising spirits.
Then recollection imposed itself. He was a gentleman of consequence, the grandson of an earl, and possessed of great wealth. The fine townhouse in Grosvenor Square was only one of his residences; the other was far grander, part of an extensive estate. She must curb her spirits and remember her station. Though she had lived beneath his roof, partaken of his table, been attended by his servants, and passed an entire week within his home, she was far more suited to serve as a companion to his sister than to aspire to be the wife of Mr. Darcy.
Her mind was divided. The sober truth declared that she was in no way a fitting bride for such a man, yet the sweeter truth prevailed for the moment. She was to behold him again, to speak with him, to enjoy his society, and perhaps even to accept his arm when escorted into dinner.
“Would you not say so, Miss Elizabeth?”
Mr. Bingley was addressing her. She had not attended to his question.
“Sir, I beg your pardon. I fear I was wool-gathering. What was your inquiry?”
“Darcy has given me to understand that you are well acquainted with his sister. She is a most amiable young lady, is she not?”
Relieved she had not given her feelings for Mr. Darcy away, she answered, “Indeed, sir. Georgiana is most agreeable and remarkably easy to esteem.”
He laughed. “She is so. It is fortunate that she is younger than her brother, for he has had considerable influence in her formation. She is a young woman who is contented with the world as she finds it and free from any air of entitlement, though she possesses a considerable fortune and has been reared in great comfort. Caroline is five and twenty. When I succeeded my father and became master of my household, she was already three and twenty, and her habits were well established. My father did her a disservice in placing her at a most select ladies’ seminary, where her mind was filled with expectations not easily realized by a lady of her situation. Whatever I may suggest, she is not inclined to be guided, for she is firmly attached to her own views.”
Elizabeth regarded him with thoughtful interest. “I have not considered inheritance in that light, sir. You inherited not only your father’s fortune but his dependents also, and must consult their welfare, even when they are not disposed to accept what is best for them.”
She allowed herself an amused chuckle. “You may count yourself fortunate in having but one unmarried sister to settle. Consider my father’s situation. He has five daughters, and the youngest is only fifteen. Fortunately, one of us is advantageously married. Perhaps Jane has mentioned that my younger sister wed my father’s heir.”
“Yes, she did.”
“It occurred scarcely four weeks after our mother’s funeral. The ceremony was conducted with the utmost privacy, attended only by her sisters and our father, and there was no wedding breakfast, for such a display would have been improper. I assure you, however, that the young couple did not regret its omission. They desired only to be married and to set out at once upon their new life.”
Mr. Bingley regarded her earnestly. “That sentiment recommends itself strongly to me, Miss Elizabeth. What signifies wealth and display if one is unhappily matched? I expressed as much to Miss Bennet in the note I entrusted to Caroline for her.”
Jane started. “A note, sir? I have not received a note from you nor a letter from your sister.”
Mr. Bingley looked astonished. “None? I departed for an extended absence in the quiet assurance that you awaited my return. Do you mean to say that you did not receive a letter from Caroline, enclosing mine and entreating you to remain constant?”
Jane shook her head. “No, sir. I believed you had quit town and had forgotten the insignificant country maid from Hertfordshire.”
His countenance changed at once, the color rising sharply to his cheeks. “Do not say so. I might have lost you and never known the peril in which I stood. On the very day I first made your acquaintance, I met with my solicitor and directed him to find a purchaser for my sheep farm in Yorkshire. My father always intended that the proceeds should enable me to purchase an estate of my own.”
His eyes rested first on Jane and then on Elizabeth. “After some weeks, a buyer was secured, and I was summoned to execute the contracts. On the day of my departure, I called at Gracechurch Street to take my leave of you, but you and your aunt were not at home. I left my card and returned home, where I wrote you a note explaining all. I entrusted it to Caroline, asking her to enclose it in a letter of her own. I relied upon your generosity to interpret my motives from what I had written.”
Seeing that Jane was crying, he reached for her hand. “Pray do not weep, Miss Bennet. You distress me beyond measure.”
Elizabeth resolved not to remain silent. Mr. Bingley must, in time, be brought to confront his sister’s conduct. His temper was so mild that he might never understand the necessity of decisive action unless it were clearly set before him.
Taking her courage in hand, she spoke. “Mr. Bingley, now that you have secured your estate, you must consider establishing your sister elsewhere, that you may be at liberty to form an establishment of your own.”
He looked at her in surprise. Jane’s color deepened.
