Page 18 of Conundrums & Coincidences

10

AFFRONT & ABACK

As Mr Fordham walked ahead with Elizabeth, Darcy’s steely-eyed glare was focused—not unlike he was aiming a pistol—on the back of the gentleman’s skull. His disingenuous manoeuvres disgust me.

Not ten minutes prior, Mr Fordham had enquired whether Darcy had ever visited Hertfordshire. Upon receiving a positive reply and proclaiming a fascination with stately houses, he questioned him about his knowledge of Ashridge House and the ruins at Berkhamsted Castle, less than forty miles from Oakwood. Darcy suspected the man’s intrigue, in some manner, was connected to a puzzle he could not solve.

While Darcy followed the others, narrow rays of sunlight filtered through overhead leaves and dappled the forest floor. The melodic, fluting songs of blackcaps sounded from nearby trees, and he resented the fact that his peaceful ramble through the old hunting forest had been interrupted by the intrusive gentleman and his prying enquiries. He could not, however, regret the arrival of Elizabeth.

No longer able to hold himself back, Darcy hastened his step, pleased the bridleway was wide enough to accommodate three people walking abreast. “Mr Fordham, if it is your intention to inveigle information from Miss Bennet and me in a bid to advance your standing in the tournament, I advise you to think again. You risk disqualification for not only yourself but us as well, and I will not have it.”

“Come, come, old chap. As rivals in this contest, one must do what one must to win.” The shorter man held his ground, but Darcy’s intense stare was more efficient when applied face-to-face, forcing Mr Fordham to look away. “Humph! I shall not remain here being affronted and listening to more of your sanctimoniousness.” A curt bow was offered, and he was gone, down the path, out of sight.

Stepping closer, Darcy offered Elizabeth his arm, and they walked some time in easy silence.

“One must speak a little, you know,” said she. “You might say something about that man’s deviousness, then I might tell you about Miss Kensett’s tactics.” She looked up at him, fine eyes twinkling, pretty mouth smiling.

He had an unsettling impulse to dip his head and kiss her. To indulge one’s appetites without restraint is not the action of a gentleman. The desire lasted precisely eleven seconds. Darcy knew that because he had been counting to ten, battling temptation, but the allure of her lips had heated his blood and distracted him for an additional second.

Tearing his gaze from her mouth, he forced a smile upon his own. “I am unwilling to speak, you know, unless I can say something utterly notable. Shall I quote Shakespeare? ‘It is the bright day that brings forth the adder, and that craves wary walking’. Oh, fear not, Miss Bennet. Mr Fordham has gone, and I have seen no actual snakes hereabouts.”

There was so much Darcy wanted to say and so much he needed to say, but the moment was not right. They were almost out of the woods.

And there is that other matter.

The information Mr Hadley had imparted was partly conjecture, and Darcy would spread no rumours. Still, it was his responsibility to protect the interests of those close to him, and that included the precious creature by his side.

“You appear deep in thought, sir. Are you pondering your current puzzle?”

“Indeed, I am.” You are the greatest puzzle of all, Elizabeth. And I could not bear another rejection from you. But if I paid my addresses properly this time and asked again, would your answer be the same as in April?

Her sweet face was tilted towards him still, and he wondered how and when the sun had reached beneath her bonnet’s brim and sprinkled freckles across her button nose.

Placing a gloved hand over the dainty one resting upon his sleeve, Darcy came to a halt. “I am not one for gossip. I dislike hearing it, and I avoid speaking it. But there is something afoot at the manor, and you soon will learn of it at any rate.” Glancing ahead, he pointed to a bench embraced on three sides by sprawling junipers. “Come, let us sit there, and I shall tell you what I know as fact.”

Seated then amongst spiny evergreens, Elizabeth inhaled deeply and made an ‘mmm’ sort of sound. “Juniper is such a powerful, intoxicating aroma. Fresh, sharp, sappy. I quite like it.”

I am glad to hear it. Darcy, too, liked the scent—so much so that juniper was a base component in his bespoke fragrance. So, she thinks I smell powerful and intoxicating. And sappy. I trust she does not mean green and juvenile, like a sapling. Still, I do remember the hot, heady days of youth when the sap was rising and…

“What was it you wanted to tell me, Mr Darcy?”

That I love you still. “When we arrived on Thursday, there was a large vase in front of the parlour’s fireplace, and it was still there this morning. Did you happen to notice it?”

“Do you mean the exotic white and blue one with depictions of chrysanthemums, peonies, and dianthus? I recall it being somewhat egg-shaped and absolutely exquisite.”

You, madam, are exquisite…and definitely not egg-shaped. “Yes, that one. According to Mr Hadley, Mrs Vincent intended to replace the flowers in it a few hours ago, but it has, apparently, disappeared. While housekeeper, maids, and footmen were searching for it, Mr Hadley arrived in the parlour fully expecting to find a piece of foolscap inside that very same vase. I believe he presently is with Mr Monroe, confirming his solution and asking how to secure his next puzzle. Furthermore, the vase—seventeenth-century Japan—probably is irreplaceable.”

Darcy wanted to share with her all Mr Hadley had told him, but he would not malign Mr Fordham without irrefutable evidence.

“There you are!” The chaperon stormed towards them, or, more accurately, towards Darcy.

He sprang to his feet. Never before had he seen Miss Rigby looking so displeased.

“You know better than to abscond with a young lady without informing her chaperon of your intention.” The fierce look she gave him would have made a lesser man wilt.

From beyond the bench, another voice, a male one, spoke up. “All is well, Miss Rigby. I’ve been doing a bit of pruning back here and keeping an eye on the two young lovers for you.”

Young lovers? Darcy chanced a glance at Elizabeth. She was blushing, and her lips had puckered into a perfect little heart shape. When he forced himself to look away from her mouth, he espied a worker emerging from the junipers and recognised him as one of the gardeners from the previous day in the shrubbery.