She smiled tightly. “That, I can believe, Mr Collins.”
“Iam afraid Icannot sit long with you today, Lizzy,” Charlotte sighed, glancing at the clock on the mantel. “There are too many chores to be done—putting up herbs, dipping candles. Mama will be beside herself if they are not finished by evening.”
Elizabeth shook her head, leaning forward. “Charlotte, you look exhausted as it is. You need rest, not a mountain of household work.”
Charlotte looked about the room vaguely. “Oh. I rest a little too often, I daresay. That is usually the problem, for I cannot manage enough interest in anything to show any bit of keenness when Iamabout my tasks, so Mama assumes I have done nothing. And that only makes it worse,” she finished with a little shrug.
“So… she gives you more to do? Charlotte! Here I thought you were only suffering from a lack of appreciation by those closest to you, but it is also exhaustion atop that? Little wonder you have been a petulant shadow of yourself!”
Charlotte’s brow clouded. “Petulant shadow? Truly, Lizzy, I’d no idea I had become so tiresome. I had simply got to the end of my feelings and… no, I do not wish to talk about it.”
“I think you must, if only so we know how to keep you from going there again,” Elizabeth insisted, taking Charlotte’s hand in hers. “I know I have been guilty of not seeing how you feel on occasion, so please tell me.”
Charlotte frowned. “I just wanted it all to stop—the demands, the pity, the way I seem to be… invisible, but still so much of a burden that it seems no one can abide my presence.”
Elizabeth leaned closer. “That is not true!”
“Is it not, Lizzy?” she asked softly.
Elizabeth swallowed. Good heavens, how many times lately had she been just as guilty of brushing off Charlotte as anyone in her family had been? She gritted her teeth. “Well, whatever has been before, something must change. You cannot be expected to simply bear up under everything without some little pleasantness for yourself. Are you doingallthe chores of the household?”
Charlotte gave a tired smile. “It is the duty of the eldest daughter, is it not? Mama depends on me, and Maria and John... well, they are still learning.”
“But surely, some of these tasks could wait. Or be shared? John is nearly grown.”
Charlotte’s smile faded. “You know how it is, Lizzy. Family is… well, it is my duty. I do not like to think of myself when...” She lifted her shoulders. “You know. I failed to find a husband, so I must make myself useful somehow.”
Elizabeth frowned. Indeed, perhaps it was time to share that outlandish, wild notion that had struck her earlier. “Charlotte, there might be a way to change your circumstances.”
Charlotte looked up from her hands, curiosity and a hint of wariness in her eyes. “What do you mean?”
Elizabeth took a deep breath, her heart pounding with the audacity of her suggestion. “You could catch Mr Collins’ notice.”
Charlotte’s head snapped fully up, her hands stilling in her lap. “Mr Collins? YourcousinMr Collins? But Lizzy, why on earth would I want to attract a man I have never met? A manyousay you do not even like!”
“He is not to my taste, to be sure, but he is not a bad man. Not clever or handsome, but neither is he vicious or truly repugnant.”
“That sounds like a winning combination,” Charlotte replied dubiously.
“It is when you consider that he will be master of his own property someday.”
Charlotte’s brows raised. “Well. Be that as it may, I have never been skilled at attracting men.”
Elizabeth leaned in with a wicked smile. “Mr Collins is not like most men. All that is required to win his favour is an attentive and rapt audience.”
Charlotte frowned, clearly puzzled. “But how can that be enough? Surely there must be more to it.”
Elizabeth shook her head slightly, choosing her words carefully. “Mr Collins is eager to please and seeks validation. If you show interest in his words and praise his connection to Lady Catherine, you will find him more than willing to return the interest.”
“But Lizzy, I am not good at pretending,” Charlotte protested. “What if I cannot make myself agreeable to him?”
Before Elizabeth could respond, Lady Lucas entered the room, her expression one of mild exasperation. “Charlotte, Maria needs your help to make over her gown for the ball. She is in a dreadful state.”
Charlotte thinned her lips into a smile, even as she reached for the hem of her gown to stand. “Coming, Mama.”
Elizabeth made a face as Lady Lucas left the room and quickly reached out, stopping her friend with a gentle hand on her arm.
“Wait, Charlotte,” Elizabeth said. “Do you see, this is just what I was talking about. It is all about Maria, is it not?”
