Charlotte looked up in surprise, her sulky demeanour faltering. She hesitated, then sighed heavily. “Very well, if it will stop your fussing. Perhaps a short drive in the country, but I will not walk.”
Elizabeth gave a satisfied nod. “A drive it shall be, then. I will fetch the pony and cart.” Jane offered Charlotte a warm smile, relieved to see her friend relenting, however grudgingly.
Half an hour later, the three of them were wedged rather snugly into Lady Lucas’s pleasure cart. It was hardly suitable for this time of year, but it was the only vehicle to be had at Lucas Lodge at the moment. Therefore, they all bundled warmly against the November chill and piled hot bricks around their feet.
Jane took the reins with a practised ease as she guided the pony along the familiar path. Charlotte, seated between her friends, seemed to sink into the worn cushions, her eyes reflecting a distant melancholy.
Elizabeth glanced at Charlotte with quiet concern. Since their last outing in the cart the previous summer, it appeared Charlotte had “grown.” The once roomy cart now felt decidedly cramped. Clearly, her friend’s lack of energy had begun to take its toll. Elizabeth held her tongue, unwilling to add to Charlotte’s burdens, but Charlotte herself broke the silence.
“I fear I am not the same as I was,” Charlotte murmured self-consciously. “It seems I have added more than just a little weight over the winter months.”
Elizabeth flushed with embarrassment but quickly masked it with a comforting smile. “Oh, Charlotte, we have all added a bit of padding during the winter. I daresay the gentlemen prefer a lady with some curves.”
“You needn’t say such things to protect my feelings.”
“Protect your feelings, nonsense. I speak from experience—have you seen Lydia lately? And she hasnotrouble finding dance partners.”
Even Charlotte had to snicker at that. “She does… ah… fill out her bodices nicely.”
“Precisely! More of us to enjoy, that is what I say,” Elizabeth declared.
Jane, who had been unusually silent, glanced over at Elizabeth, her cheeks reddening slightly. She offered a timid smile, clearly relieved by the lighter mood. “Where shall we drive today, Charlotte?”
Charlotte considered for a moment. “Perhaps we should keep to the higher roads, to avoid the worst of the mud.”
Elizabeth nodded in agreement. “An excellent idea. The view is always better, too. Perhaps Oakham Mount?”
With a flick of the reins, Jane steered the pony towards the elevated path, the cart jostling gently over the uneven ground. Charlotte settled back, a trace of her former selfpeeking through as the familiar countryside unfolded before them. The only bother was that the wheels slipped three or four times on the muddy road, eliciting a gasp from Charlotte and a sharp intake of breath from Jane.
“Perhaps we should turn back,” Jane said after they had slipped for a fifth time. “This cart is far too light to manage the roads in this condition.”
“You are probably right,” Charlotte agreed… but with such a heavy sigh that Elizabeth’s heart squeezed. Oh, no, they could not take Charlotte back home so soon after such a meagre attempt at cheer! They had only barely got her out of the house as it was and were not likely to succeed again if met with “failure” this time.
“Jane, stop the cart,” Elizabeth commanded.
Jane pulled the pony to the side of the road, where there remained a bit of spongy grass, and drew him to a halt. “What?”
Elizabeth hopped down, her boots sinking slightly into the muck. “Let me see if the ground is firm beneath the surface,” she said, stomping her feet on the path. Mud splattered her hem, and Jane’s eyebrows drew together in mild reproach.
“Elizabeth, now your gown is a mess!”
For the first time in what felt like an eternity, Charlotte’s lips twitched into a tentative smile, slow and cautious, as if unsure whether she could permit anyone to see her happy. Elizabeth, grinning in return, stomped harder, sending more mud flying. “It is only a bit of surface slickness,” she assured them. “Nothing to worry about. We may slide a little, but never more than a few inches before we are quite in control again.”
Jane sighed. “Your muddy boots are going to soil the inside of the cart now.”
Charlotte waved her hand dismissively. “It is no bother, Jane. It will force me to get outside and clean it up. Are you and Lizzy not always saying that having some occupation would raise my spirits?”
Elizabeth and Jane shared a dismayed glance.Charlottewould have to clean the cart? Or was she just saying that out of this recent petulance of hers? At Longbourn, Mr Hill and the stable boy ensured the carriage was always spotless, but the Lucases did not have as many servants, so… it waspossiblethat the duty would fall to Charlotte.
“Do not worry, Charlotte,” Elizabeth said quickly. “We will help you clean the cart before it is put away.”
“Indeed,” Jane added, “We shall have a merry time of it.”
But Charlotte was shaking her head. “Oh, I do notrequire—”
Jane stilled her with a hand on her forearm. “Charlotte. The pleasure would be ours. Truly.”
Charlotte’s face betrayed a conflicting tapestry of feeling—unworthiness and doubt being the clearest on the surface. But there was also a strong flicker of pleasure at being noticed. “Very well,” she sighed. “If you have nothing better to do.”
