“I shall speak with the Gardiners. They will probably make more sense anyway.”
With a quick curtsey, she did as suggested, and Elizabeth left off worrying about her to focus on the colonel. She could imagine a hundred things hemightsay—ninety of which she could do without—but shewascurious.
“I wish to ask your advice on a certain matter.”
“I am at your disposal.”
He looked chagrined. “I imagine you and Darcy must have had quite the conversation on our last day. I believe you learnt of myMirror and Statuetheory.”
Embarrassment started to creep over Elizabeth, but there was no need to be missish, so she laughed. “Not only did he share that theory with me, but he told Anne, and I told LadyCatherine. I should not be surprised to find it published in the paper or studied at Oxford. It is not exactly secret.”
“I hope you were not offended.”
“Being offended serves little purpose. I seem to be dragged into every awkward conversation in three counties. Thus far, I have been mostly successful, so I imagine I should not complain. I found the mirror analogy useful with Anne, and so I ought to applaud you.”
“I thank you, and if I offended you in any way, might I apologise?”
Elizabeth studied the man carefully and paused to make him sweat enough to build a little character. “All offences against me are forgiven. Consider yourself absolved.”
The colonel had a crooked little smile that would have him leg-shackled within a fortnight if he ever showed it to Lydia while he was in uniform. “We call thatdodging a bulletin the army.”
“To be honest, you were never as far in my brown books as you seem to believe. Perhaps you dodged a bullet, but it was thrown by hand from a 10-year-old boy.”
“You could put an eye out with one of those.”
She laughed with him and glanced at Georgiana, who stared in apparent wonder.Did the two gentlemen ever let their charge see how men and women behaved?Perhaps the young lady was too carefully guarded. She would not be the first; Elizabeth resolved to ask the heiress about it, if she had the chance.
“On one more issue, I would ask your advice. As you know, I slighted your sister in Hunsford. Should I offer her an apology?”
“Apologies seem rampant among you men. Mr Darcy already offered one that was heartfelt and well done—though, to be fair, heowedher one. I recommend you leave well enough alone. Inever told Jane what happened and have no intention of doing so. An apology is superfluous.”
The colonel looked unsure of himself. Elizabeth, growing impatient, raised her voice in exasperation. “Jane, the colonel feels obliged to apologise for inadvertently spreading, in the entire course of his life, about the same amount of gossip as Mama spreads on a typical Tuesday. What do you recommend?”
“Why are you asking me?”
“It is just the colonel and me here. We need advice from someone sensible… and you may have been the subject.”
Jane laughed. “Oh, that!We are all done with that. Consider yourself absolved, sir. If you feel some compulsion to make amends, you might quietly tell me some stories about my intended I can hold over him once I have him in my power.”
Elizabeth rejoiced when Miss Darcy joined their laughter, as did the Gardiners.
The bell rang for the curtain. “Perhaps I should offer you an apology, Colonel,” Elizabeth said, “and pray, let us not waste time denying it is your due.”
“The very thought never crossed my mind. I cannot for the life of me work out what you might apologise for, but I will take you at your word.”
“When we first met, you reminded me of another so-called gentleman whose name is no longer spoken. I imbued you with his attributes, good and bad, and never gave you a fair chance. You and your cousin were both harmed by my propensity to rely on first impressions. Mr Darcy and I have put it behind us, so I imagine we should do the same. It was dishonest and unfair.”
The colonel looked chagrined. “You apologise twice as much for a tenth the offence. May we begin anew?”
Elizabeth smiled and dipped a curtsey. “Good sir, I am Miss Elizabeth Bennet. It is my pleasure to meet you.”
He bowed. “Colonel Fitzwilliam, at your service, madam. It is indeed a pleasure.”
Elizabeth started to wave Georgiana over, but the colonel held up his hand.
“In all seriousness, I owe you my thanks. It is sometimes helpful to glance in the mirror. As you may have surmised, neither Darcy nor I liked what we saw.”
“Few do, but I would beg you to remember a mirror is just a tool. It has flaws and inaccuracies of its own. If you learnt something useful, I am satisfied, but I would caution you not to read more into it than the reflection warrants.”
