“Yes, I do. I enjoy the game greatly. Due to most men believing a lady has not the ability to play the game, with my late father’s assistance, I subscribed to theChess by Post Leaguebased in London. My father registered me as a man, Lewis Brentwood, that way I used my true initials.”
“You are LB? I play as TB using the same service,” Bennet revealed.
“My, now that is a small world,” Hildebrand observed. “And how did you do against Mr Bennet, Lulu?”
“He is up by a few games,” Louisa admitted.
“I hope all of you will visit Longbourn, and we will be able to play our current game across the board from one another. If you are brave, you may attempt to play against Lydia.” Bennet was delighted that Miss Bingley was his opponent of many years. All he ever received from the office in London was a slip of paper with her move, but he felt like he already had keen insight into the workings of her mind from the way she played the game.
~~~~~~~/~~~~~~~
Bingley was dancing with Miss Mary when he noticed Darcy hiding away in the corner, trying to blend in with the foliage hanging over the edge of the large pot as the first dance of his set was ending.
“Miss Mary, I need to speak to my friend. Would you object to my taking the time between the dances to do so?” Bingley requested when the dance ended.
“I will be here when you return,” Mary allowed.
After bowing to his partner, Bingley made for where Darcy was hiding himself. “Come, Darcy,” Bingley said before Darcy could discourage him. “I must have you dance. I hate to see you standing about by yourself in this stupid manner. The next set will begin after the second dance of this set. You had much better dance.”
“I certainly shall not,” Darcy retorted with asperity. “You know how I detest it, unless I am particularly acquainted with my partner. At such an assembly as this, it would be insupportable. I do not see your older sister, and I will request a set of her, but there is not another woman in the room that would not be a punishment for me to stand up with.”
“I would not be so fastidious as you are for a kingdom!” Cried Bingley, “Upon my honour, I never met with so many pleasant girls in my life as I have this evening, and there are several of them you see who are uncommonly pretty.”
“Youhave been dancing with the only two handsome girls in the room,” said Mr. Darcy, looking first at the lady who Bingley danced the first with and at the miss waiting for him to return to her.
“Yes, they are beautiful, what of it? You well know that is not how I judge women any longer,” Bingley shot back. As helooked past the pot, he could make out part of his own sister and Miss Elizabeth next to Lulu. “There is one of my dance partner’s sisters sitting down just behind you, who is very pretty, and I dare say very agreeable. Do let me introduce you. I met the sisters when you had already run off.”
“Which do you mean?” Darcy looked past the large potted plant for a moment. He looked at her briefly and then turned back to Bingley. Without lowering his voice, he said coldly: “She is tolerable, but not handsome enough to temptme; I am in no humour at present to give consequence to young ladies who are slighted by other men. You had better return to your partner and enjoy your dance, for you are wasting your time with me.”
“Darcy! Lower your voice, you can be heard.” Had Bingley not needed to return to Miss Mary, he would have pulled his friend outside and berated him. That would have to wait until later.
There was no missing the rebuke in his friend’s voice. Darcy was certain this was not the last he would hear of it from Bingley. He hoped the lady had not heard because he regretted the words already. He had allowed his mood and worry for Anna to overrule his good sense and behaved in a most ungentlemanlike fashion. As he remonstrated with himself, he omitted to do the one thing he should have: apologise immediately.
Due to not having lowered his voice, those sitting on the other side of the potted plant heard every word that had passed between the two men. Strangely enough, Elizabeth was the only one of the four who did not look outraged.
Bennet was about to jump up and take the rude man to task for insulting his Lizzy. Only his daughter’s hand on his arm kept him in his place.
“Papa, do you remember what I opined when Mr Darcyarrived?” Elizabeth pointed out to her sire. She saw him nod but still looked ready to deliver a public setdown. “I am not injured by his words, I promise you. Should he have said them? No, he should not have. Were his words impolite and ungentlemanly? Yes, they were. With all of that, I do not believe that his words were aimed at me as much as an attempt to have Mr Bingley leave him be.”
“Mr Darcy is usually the most gentlemanlike man I have met,” Louisa related. “When he arrived yesterday, I could tell he was worried about something, and then today, my younger sister, Caroline, who is not with us tonight, would not take any of his hints or direct words that he was not in the mood for her company. I believe that has added to his bad mood.”
“I do not excuse what Mr Darcy said, but I did observe how Caroline grated on his nerves today. From what Charles has told me, he is not very comfortable in groups of strangers,” Hildebrand added.
Elizabeth looked at Papa with an ‘I told you so look’ on her countenance.
“In that case, I will call at Netherfield Park in the morning on the morrow at ten, and Mr Darcy and Iwillhave a conversation,” Bennet decided. “I will not accost him publicly and embarrass him before all in the hall as I wanted to do.”
Knowing how angry Papa got if anyone hurt one of his daughters, Elizabeth was thankful he would not confront Mr Darcy here. She supposed Papa could have intimidated him by having him exit the hall, then take him to where John and some of his men were waiting. It was better this way; by the morning much of Papa’s pique would have burnt away, and she hoped by then Mr Darcy would be in a better mood.
“Let us make sure that what he said is not repeated to any of our friends,” Elizabeth suggested. “It will sink Mr Darcy’s character before we have a chance to understand whyhe said what he did.”
The other three agreed. As the set was ending, the four stood and walked back to where Miss Jones was speaking with her brother.
As they passed Darcy, he saw both the older and younger Misses Bingley, and an unknown man were with the lady he had slighted, he felt worse about what he had said. When the man gave him a frigid look, Darcy felt a cold chill in his spine.
He watched as Bingley led the woman he had insulted to the floor. He was not blind. Bingley had been correct. The lady was more than pretty, and he saw her emerald-green eyes shining with intelligence and wit. As he watched, he saw Miss Bingley sit down next to the first lady Bingley had danced with, who, for some reason was sitting out the set. He made his way over to them to solicit Miss Bingley’s hand for the next dance.
“Miss Bingley, will you dance the next with me?” Darcy requested awkwardly. He did not request an introduction to the blonde beauty next to Miss Bingley.
