“Such as?” he asked in what appeared to be mild interest.
“Truly, Darcy, such a thing would not be for me to say. However, if you were predisposed for or against a certain person, can you say that your judgment would never err?”
“I expect no one can say as much, though I have made it the study of my life to avoid such mistakes.”
“And you would not leave a person in doubt about your opinions of them?” Mrs Fitzwilliam pressed, her tones brittle.
“Never, unless they were determined not to hear, or unless the confession of such an opinion would give pain.”
The lady made a derisive expression to her companion. “I have never known you to be greatly troubled over the feelings of others, Darcy.”
“Now, my dear Anne,” Lady Sophia soothed, “did not Darcy think of your comfort when he invited me on this little visit to Pemberley? Goodness knows, it was not for my own sake.”
“You do him too much credit, Sophia. I know very well what he is about, and my comfort had little to do with it.”
Elizabeth discovered only belatedly that she was still watching Mr Darcy, for his eyes shifted in her direction when Georgiana discreetly excused herself from the piano bench. His gaze brushed lightly over his sister, settled on Elizabeth for a half a pulse beat, then flitted away, leaving her feeling both rumpled in spirit and superfluous to the moment. She quietly rose and could not decide whether she was dismayed or relieved that he gave her no further notice as she walked by him towards the door.
“On the contrary, Anne,” he said in a cheerful tone, “your pleasure was chief among my concerns. Every host wishes for his guest—particularly if she be a lady—to have a close companion in the party in whom she might confide and take comfort.”
Lady Sophia offered one of her cultured trills of laughter. “There, do you see, Anne? He pays us both a compliment.”
“Or he means to insult us both,” Anne Fitzwilliam retorted drily. “Darcy always means more than he says.”
“I meant no insult,” Mr Darcy answered. “But I do always speak the truth. I thought of my own pleasure as much as yours when arranging for your stay.” He finished this remark with a warm smile at Lady Sophia, then turned his attention to his drink.
Elizabeth could bear no more. She had traversed the room slowly, finding an excuse to close the piano or gather Georgiana’s forgotten shawl as she went, but now she turned away in humiliation. Whatever heedless words had once slipped from Mr Darcy’s lips or flowed from his pen, it was clear that he had now thought better of them.
It was for the best. Truly—she had been right before when she had reminded him that any alliance between themselves would be reprehensible. And yet… there was that nagging thrill in her heart whenever he was close, a comfortable resonance whenever she looked upon his face, and a pleasant shiver up the back of her neck whenever his voice sounded in her ear. She had grown fond of being near him, accustomed to his sardonic witticisms, and rather enamoured of… well, that thought was better forgotten.
Elizabeth was now alone in the hall and quite put out with herself for having lost track of Miss Darcy. The young mistress was likely already upstairs dressing for bed, but Elizabeth could feel no sense of weariness or fatigue. Rather, she was restless, and craved a long, soothing book. She gave Miss Darcy’s shawl to a maid and bent her steps towards the library.
She lingered some while, pondering over the selections more out of fretfulness than indecision. Nothing suited her tastes, but at last she settled on an old favourite, thinking that within its pages, at least, she would be at peace. Tucking it close to her chest, she turned around and nearly screamed when she discovered Colonel Fitzwilliam leaning against the stack just behind her. She fell back, covering her mouth and trying to compose herself.
“My apologies, Mrs Wickham. I did not intend to startle you.”
She steadied her breath and amended her posture to something more dignified. “I protest that you must have intended to startle me, standing so close and approaching so silently as you did.”
One side of his mouth tugged upwards and his blue eyes slowly roved from her head to her toes and back again. “Intriguing,” he muttered under his breath. “I would offer to help you find something, but it appears you already have.”
She glanced at the cover of her book, then repositioned it just before her chest. “Indeed. If you will excuse me, sir—”
“Pray, Mrs Wickham, a moment. I had been hoping to speak privately with you and now is an opportune time.” He stepped nearer, his manner a curious mixture of masculine assertiveness and warmth.
Elizabeth drew back until she pressed against the shelf. “I will ask you to keep a respectable distance, sir.”
The colonel stopped, one brow arched. “What is… oh! I see how it is. The lord of the manor routine, eh? You have nothing to fear from me, Mrs Wickham. Faith, I warrant that Darcy would skin me and place my head on a pike if I gave you any offence.”
Elizabeth relaxed somewhat. “He might speak in my favour, but I doubt, sir, that Mr Darcy would take up my grievances against his own cousin with such vehemence as you claim.”
The colonel gave another crooked smile and his eyes seemed to circle round Elizabeth’s face once more. “Let us not test which of us is correct. What I meant to ask you, if I may, pertains to your esteemed brother-in-law. When was the last you saw him?”
Elizabeth blinked at this sudden shift from her expectations and tried to recall the facts. “A fortnight ago. My younger sister said on Sunday that he had gone to London just after his last call. If you wished to see him, perhaps you would have done better to remain where you were.”
“Perhaps.” The colonel crossed one leg over the other and leaned more heavily against the shelves. “What makes you think I came to see Wickham?”
“Why… the very fact that you asked me about him,” Elizabeth stammered with some indignation.
The colonel scoffed. “If I need to speak with George Wickham, I have no trouble finding him. Nor do I need to ascertain with my own eyes that the cretin still draws breath, for I have sufficient contacts anywhere he might think to go.”
