“I am so glad to see you,” she said earnestly.
Elizabeth returned the embrace with warmth.
Across the table, Richard caught Darcy’s eye—and grinned.
Broadly.
Then winked.
Darcy’s expression did not change, though he very deliberately turned his attention elsewhere.
Throughout the meal, conversation remained safely fixed on practical matters—chiefly, the arrangements for Richard’s impending marriage.
“Since you all are here,” Lady Catherine was saying, “we ought to have the wedding quickly; preferably in the next few days. This will keep the Fitzwilliamandde Bourgh hounds at bay.”
“It must be respectable,” Lady Anne said gently.
“It will be more than respectable,” Lady Catherine returned. “It will becorrect. But I will not allow it to be delayed any further.”
Darcy listened with half an ear, his attention drifting instead to Elizabeth beside him—until her voice, quiet but clear, drew the focus of the table.
“I should very much like to make Miss de Bourgh’s acquaintance,” she said.
The effect was immediate, as all froze in position, mid-conversation. Darcy felt it as keenly as if the air itself had shifted.
Elizabeth looked from one to another, her expression open but faintly puzzled. “I hope that is not—improper?”
Lady Catherine and Richard exchanged a brief glance.
“It is not improper,” Lady Anne said carefully. “Only… difficult.”
Elizabeth frowned slightly. “Difficult?”
Lady Catherine set down her cup with deliberate precision. “Anne is… exceedingly timid.”
Richard cleared his throat. “To a degree that most would find difficult to comprehend.”
Darcy watched Elizabeth closely as Lady Anne continued, more gently, “She does not receive visitors. Indeed, she scarcely leaves her rooms.”
“The last time she attempted to go beyond the threshold,” Lady Catherine added, her tone firm but not unkind, “she was unable to step past the door. It resulted in a most distressing scene. She was quite overcome.”
“Unable to breathe,” Lady Anne said softly. “Cathy wrote to me about it. They were obliged to bring her back at once and administer something to calm her.”
There was a brief silence as all watched Elizabeth, sitting on the edges of their seats to see how she would react to this new information.
Elizabeth smiled kindly. “I quite understand. I cannot imagine it is easy for her, or any of you.”
Lady Catherine’s shoulders eased—only slightly, but enough to be noticed.
Elizabeth continued, her voice steady. “In that case, I shall not intrude. I am perfectly content to remain in my rooms—or the library—so that she may have her wedding without distress.”
The relief in the room was immediate.
Lady Catherine exhaled, the tension leaving her frame.
Lady Anne leaned forward. “Are you certain? You are not… offended?”
Elizabeth shook her head. “Not at all. I may not fully understand her feelings, but I can respect them.”
