Page 146 of Bitterness of Spirit & The Painting

He did not miss the hidden invitation and replied with barely concealed joy.

“Did she? How wonderful! Yes, Lambton is very close to Pemberley. Only five miles away. I look forward to meeting Mrs Gardiner very soon.”

They eventually separated, each going in a different direction but still close enough to feel the other’s nearness. And to enjoy it, more than either of them imagined. The dreadful memories, the misunderstandings, the mortification, the guilt, were still all there. But a brief encounter on the edge of the sea, at sunrise, had been the chance to smooth out a little bit of their rocky past, just enough to allow the present to step forward.

∞∞∞

Bingley arrived for breakfast with a large smile and declared he had a healthy appetite. Darcy was already there, enjoying a cup of coffee while staring out of the window, preoccupied with an image that was only in his mind.

“I will try to see if Miss Bennet is at home after breakfast. Perhaps she will do me the honour of introducing me to her aunt,” Bingley said.

“It is likely that she will be home,” Darcy replied unexpectedly. “I will join you if you still want me to.”

“Truly? Would you? That would be excellent! Excellent, indeed!”

“And later on, if you agree, I would like to introduce you to an old friend, too. Our mothers were close friends and apparently so were we, as children. I do not remember her, but everyone else has told me so.”

“Her?” Bingley asked.

“Yes. Mrs Julia Norwood. She also has two lovely children.”

Bingley threw him an intrigued glance.

“And…is her husband at home?”

Darcy replied with an angry arch of his eyebrow. “Do not speak nonsense, Bingley. I told you she is an old friend and I met her yesterday for the first time in nearly twenty years.”

“Oh, I see. Forgive me…I did not mean to offend you.”

Darcy waved his hand. “Let us forget about it. By the way, she is the pianoforte player we hear.”

“Is she? Truly? She seems as talented as Georgiana. Is that not another extraordinary coincidence?”

Darcy felt unprepared to answer. It was a strange coincidence indeed, that two people closely connected to his mother could claim the same talent.

“So, should we go?” Bingley asked eagerly.

“Let us wait another half an hour, just to be certain we are not disturbing them,” Darcy suggested, although he had to admit his own impatience was hard to conceal.

∞∞∞

Jane looked at her image in the mirror under Elizabeth’s amused gaze. The eldest Miss Bennet was as pretty as she was excited, and her nervousness suited her very well.

Elizabeth’s recent encounter with Mr Darcy and the news that he might call with Mr Bingley threw the entire house into uproar. Mrs Crawford was so astonished and so happy to have the son of Lady Anne—who she was exceedingly proud to call her friend—visiting her house, that she needed her smelling salts. Her husband and daughter—not at all acquainted with the lady—were also emotional and anxious.

With her aunt Gardiner also nervous, Elizabeth tried to keep up the appearance of composure, fighting her own distress. Until recently, she had been certain she would not meet Darcy again, unless by chance, and then he would likely try to avoid her as though she was his worst enemy.

No man so harshly rejected, so deeply offended and unjustly accused would forgive his abuser. And a gentleman with such extreme pride and such a resentful temper could even be expected to seek revenge.

However, he had proven to her that she had misjudged him again, as he had been, if not calm or composed, at least very polite, even friendly. He had shown no resentment, no grudge, but had instead encouraged his friend to visit her sister and had expressed his pleasure at the opportunity to meet her aunt.

As for her, as much as she had dreaded seeing him, when the meeting finally occurred, she was mortified, nervous, but not in the least displeased. She was content to at least indicate to him that she had read his letter and trusted it and that her opinion of Wickham had changed. She was certain he had understood her meaning during their short conversation by the sea.

The image of Darcy embracing Mrs Norwood affected Elizabeth more than she was willing to admit, and her speculations about their relationship increased, as well as her shame for entertaining such thoughts.

It was a little before noon when Mr Darcy and Mr Bingley finally arrived. The former became an immediate subject of interest, while the latter was content to sit near the subject of his own interest—Jane Bennet.

Mrs Crawford, with her husband and daughter, and Mrs Gardiner, were happy to engage Mr Darcy in conversation. He responded with his usual restraint and obvious struggle to ease his manners.