“Bingley, it all seems improbable.” Sir Thomas shook his head. “And how are we even to plan such a thing? I have no wife to serve as hostess. I would not know where to begin. I am an old bachelor, gentlemen; I am no expert in local customs or social niceties. I would not know how to make such an affair palatable to the town.”
Bingley grinned. “That, sir, is easily solved. We had thought—well, that is—Darcy and I had discussed it, and we wondered if there might be a particular family… some respected local household, with social standing…”
“Someone the people already trust,” Darcy continued, finishing Bingley’s thought. “And someone, perhaps, whose family already views you in a somewhat more generous light than others. If you had their support, they would bring others along by association.”
Sir Thomas raised his eyebrows, waiting for them to continue.
Bingley leaned forward. “The Bennets, sir. You know them, do you not?”
Sir Thomas considered. “By reputation only. I believe Mr. Bennet keeps somewhat to himself. But the family is respected, yes. Their elder daughters are quite well-regarded by those who speak of them, both for their beauty and their characters—the elder two, at least—and I…” He cleared his throat. “Well, that is, I have my suspicions that they have done a kindness or two for the girls here. My maids certainly seem to know who Miss Bennet and Miss Elizabeth are.”
Bingley nodded eagerly. “Exactly so! They are sensible, practical women. We have spoken to them at length, and they seem to have a good understanding of the town’s… sentiments.”
Darcy added, “And Miss Elizabeth mentioned that the Bennets are well-acquainted with the social scene here. Their family has lived here for years, and they are nearly the center of the neighborhood.”
Sir Thomas looked between them, a faint smile growing. “So, you would enlist the Bennets to help manage this gathering? What gives you the impression that they would agree?”
“Call it a hunch,” Bingley said.
“Well,” Sir Thomas sighed, “what do I know of such things? It is not as if I have something to lose in the affair, so you may as well please yourselves. And I suppose…” He glanced thoughtfully between them. “It would give you the chance to make the ladies’ acquaintance.”
Bingley cleared his throat, glancing sideways at Darcy. “Yes. We thought that, if you were to invite Mr. Bennet… perhaps he might bring his family to call. After all, what gathering could be successful without the right ladies to guide it?”
Darcy gave him a measured look but said nothing. Sir Thomas only chuckled. “Very well. If this is the approach you both believe will sway Meryton, I shall send Mr. Bennet an invitation. He may think me mad, but I doubt he will refuse outright.”
Elizabeth had settled herselfwith a book in the drawing room, curling up in her favorite chair by the hearth while Jane worked at a bit of embroidery on the sofa. It was an exceptionally cold afternoon, and the fire scarcely kept pace with the chill seeping into the room from the windows. As a consequence, their mother and younger sisters had returned upstairs directly after nuncheon, claiming the comforts of thick quilts and downy beds for the rest of the day.
Elizabeth’s gaze had drifted off the pages and into the dancing flames. She had fully intended to read a bit more ofThe Vicar of Wakefield—at least through the part about the Primroses being forced to move from their home—but her attention felt thin and fickle as the wisps of fire flitting about the brick. Thanks to that one particular—
“Lizzy, you look five miles away,” Jane observed from the sofa. “Or… perhaps onlythreemiles.”
Elizabeth cleared her throat and drew her shoulders back. “Sorry?”
Jane’s mouth turned up on one side. “You were very coy about what the gentlemen said when you went to Netherfield. You must have seen them, I assume.”
“Only Mr. Darcy.”
“Oh! Why, that is… oh, dear, that does not sound very promising.”
Elizabeth shot her sister a glance. “If you had left well enough alone, I might not have had to anger the gentleman when I went to explain everything to him.”
Jane sucked her lip between her teeth. “Truly! Oh, I feared as much. I had thought… well, bother what I thought. Was heveryangry?”
Elizabeth closed her book and set it on a table beside her. “Not really, but the fact that you feared he might be ought to be enough to chastise you properly on the matter. I still cannot fathom what you were thinking, Jane.”
“Thinking! Why, I was thinking that Aunt had a dazzling idea.”
Elizabeth blinked, her expression deadpan. “To trick two wealthy, single gentlemen into pairing off with her nieces at dinner?”
“Oh, pish-posh, Lizzy, do not be so silly. She has known both those gentlemen for years—both personally and by reputation. She knew very well that theymightcome to Netherfield—”
“After you tempted them.”
“—and,” Jane continued without missing a beat, “that they might be induced to do something for Sir Thomas—”
“After you put them in a position to feel guilty for imposing on the man.”
“Now, Lizzy, you know very well that I never… orhardlyever do anything unseemly. This was just abitof a push. And if the gentlemen truly are offended, what have we lost, hmm? Sir Thomas will hardly be worse off than he was before.”
