His heart in his throat, Darcy grabbed her arms and pulled her back. The wheel boss bumped against his thigh. Good God, that had been too close! But she was safe, her back pressed against him.
Once the pounding of his heart had slowed, he asked, “Are you hurt?”
She paused before answering. “Pray release me.”
His hands dropped to his sides. At least this time she looked before crossing the street.
His chest ached as he followed her. Even if she would not speak to him, he was not going to let her walk unprotected and alone in London. He stayed a pace or two behind her until she was forced to stop by a delivery cart blocking her way. He had to try again. “Elizabeth.” No, that was too familiar. “Miss Elizabeth. Miss Bennet.”
She did not turn to look at him. “If you are composing a list of what I am called, you have forgotten Lizzy, Eliza, and Libbet.”
At least she was responding! “I once told your cat that I am a verystupid mortal, and it is still true.”
She seemed to relax a little. “I will not argue with you on that, sir.”
“It is confusing to me. I know you dislike many things about me, yet you seem so comfortable with Eversleigh. You have a magic bond with him. He understands your life in Faerie in a way I cannot. He is a viscount. And I would be very surprised if he has not thought about marrying you.”
She gave a gurgle of laughter and finally looked at him. “Oh, yes, he thinks about marrying me. Whenever he is particularly frustrated with Lady Frederica, he thinks, ‘It would be so much easier if I simply married Libbet.’” She caught Eversleigh’s grumbling tone perfectly. “That does not mean he wants to marry me. And there are two very good reasons why I would never marry him.”
He took a deep breath. “Why is that?”
“First, he is Master of the Collegium, and second, I could never match his sartorial elegance. I feel perpetually rumpled and disheveled when I am with him. He needs a wife who will look as effortlessly elegant and stylish as he does.”
Relief washed over him. Of course Elizabeth would never marry the Master of the Collegium. He should have realized that on his own. “You never look rumpled to me.”
She cast a glance down at the splashes of street muck on her skirt from the horses’ hooves. “If that is true, you are indeed a very stupid mortal.” But she said it with laughter in her voice.
He made a slight bow. “At your service.”
“It is not true that I dislike many things about you. I did once, but I know you better now. I am still not happy you are part of the Collegium, but I have been so surrounded by mages of late that I am becoming inured to it.”
Surely there had to be something he could offer in return. “I planto speak to Bingley about your sister.”
“That is good of you. Do you know I am afraid to write to Jane?”
“Because you spoke to me about Bingley?”
She shook her head. “Because I cannot tell her about anything. She knows that I went to Faerie the first time, but how do I explain to her what I have been doing since without mentioning the second trip, sorcery, Aelfric, Eversleigh, either of my parents, or Mr. and Mrs. Collins? Mr. Bingley is but an afterthought on that list. The last letter I wrote to Jane was about the weather and Pepper’s adventures catching mice because I could hardly say that I was waiting to hear whether Lady Catherine would be executed, after learning how to make blood wards from a peer of the realm who is also a prince of Faerie, and healing Lord Matlock who was under a sorcerous spell. I certainly cannot explain why Lady Matlock insisted I stay at Matlock House when she had never met me before that day.”
“That is a dilemma. Should I be encouraged my name was absent from the list of forbidden topics?”
She blushed. “It seemed impolite to mention you to your face.”
He took a deep breath. “If you did tell your sister about me, what would you say?”
She was silent for some time, but it was not the silence of anger. When she finally spoke, her voice was soft enough that he had to lean towards her to hear over the street noise. “I would tell her I think very highly of you and wish you could play a different role in my life, but I do not know if it will be possible. I am doing what I can to make myself marriageable again, but a great deal will depend on what happens at the revel. If society chooses to frown on the Sidhe and women with magic, Lady Frederica and I will both be pariahs. But if it goes well....We will see.” She looked up at him with a question in her eyes.
It was all he could do not to take her in his arms. “I thank you. That is all I can ask. But I do not promise to accept society’s judgment if Idisagree with it.”
Her smile was sad. “It never crossed my mind that you would.”
They had reached Matlock House. “Thank you for answering my questions.”
“Would you like to come inside?”
He shook his head. “They will be dressing for dinner soon, and I do not wish to leave Mrs. Collins alone for long. But I will tell my aunt that I would be happy for an invitation to dine soon.”
“I would like that.” She offered him her hand. He raised it to his lips and kept it there as long as he dared. If only he had the right to do more!
