Darcy inclined his head. “You will find my sister has learnt a great deal in the short time since meeting Miss Bennet,” he said. “She has already undertaken several tasks at the estate and has written to Mrs Reynolds to ask questions about what has been done at Pemberley since Mother died. I have little doubt that my tenants will find their lives improved when we return. Miss Bennet has been a good friend to her.”
Elizabeth smiled at that. “Georgiana is very sweet, and I cannot imagine anyone not enjoying her company. I have several female cousins and spent many years living among them, but Georgiana and I have enjoyed our time together very much. It is different from spending time with my cousins, but I cannot say that I would trade it for anything.”
As she spoke, the door opened once more and a man entered, bearing a tray laid with the coffee service, a few pastries, and a small dish of fruit. He set it down with quiet efficiency beside Elizabeth’s chair. A maid followed with a serving tray bearing several cups, along with some other needed items.
Elizabeth turned at once to attend to her guest, asking Richard how he took his coffee and selecting a small assortment of items from the tray. She poured the cup herself and handed it to him, then placed a plate within his reach.
“You are most considerate, Miss Bennet,” Richard said, accepting the cup and watching her with evident interest as she completed the task.
The earl nodded approvingly. “You see, Colonel,” he said, with a satisfied glance at his granddaughter, “Millwood takes good care of its guests.”
Richard’s gaze lingered upon Elizabeth a moment longer than courtesy strictly permitted, his smile sharpening with intent. “Then I see I am fortunate indeed,” he said lightly, “to have arrived where intelligence and kindness are so gracefully united. A household so ordered cannot fail to be improved by its mistress.”
Elizabeth met the compliment at once. Her smile did not falter, but it cooled perceptibly as she looked at him. “My grandfather expects his guests to feel at ease,” she replied, her tone light yet precise, the faintest trace of dryness beneath it. “I endeavour to provide hospitality to all whom he is pleased to invite here—since, after all, Millwood is his concern, not mine.”
The earl’s brow creased at once, and he glanced at her with mild reproach before smoothing his expression into genial approval. “So they shall,” he said warmly as though nothing untoward had passed between them. “Millwood does not often lack for company, but it improves greatly with the right sort.” He spoke with deliberate cheer as if he were determined to make up for the lacklustre welcome his granddaughter had offered.
Richard accepted his cup with a nod, amusement flickering in his eyes. “Then I am indeed most pleased to have not only been granted this extended leave, but also to enjoy this invitation. I do thank you, Lord Granfield.”
Elizabeth inclined her head, and responded exactly as courtesy demanded, choosing not to respond to the gentleman’s flirtations. “We do hope your stay will be a pleasant one, Colonel.”
Darcy watched as Elizabeth sat back once her duty to her guest was complete, her manner returning at once to its former ease. It was evident to him that she was aware of her grandfather’s intentions—and that she was not entirely pleased by them. It was possible she simply did not care for the colonel’s manner, being entirely too familiar with this sort of flirtation and preferring instead a plainer mode of address. He could not help wondering whether she might, in time, prefer a different manner of address—though he did not yet allow himself much hope of it.
The thought nearly provoked a laugh, and he was obliged to suppress it; his amusement only drew Elizabeth’s attention. She shot him a look of exasperation—one that spoke plainly of her own impatience with their guest—and once again Darcy was forced to check his reaction. He found himself pleased that she appeared so wholly unimpressed by his cousin and so entirely at ease with himself, and he could not help but wonder what that distinction might signify.
Still, he would give Richard time to make his case and observe how matters stood once that opportunity had been fairly afforded. The longer he remained at Millwood, the more difficult it became to imagine leaving it without Elizabeth as his wife.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
Later that afternoon, Darcy found his cousin resting in their shared sitting room. His steps slowed as he crossed the threshold, his mind already occupied with matters he had no wish to raise—least of all with the very man whom Elizabeth’s grandfather intended for her. For a moment he considered retreating altogether; yet such avoidance would serve no purpose, and he entered the room.
The rooms he and Georgiana occupied formed what was plainly meant as a guest wing. Millwood Cottage was large for a cottage, but it was hardly large enough to boast many spare chambers or much distinction between those meant for family and those allotted to visitors.
Even so, a single passage provided some separation between guests and family, a circumstance for which Darcy had been grateful when making the arrangements. His own room belonged to a suite likely designed to host a married couple, yet he had willingly shared it with Richard, the advantage being that Georgiana enjoyed a sitting room reserved solely for herself andMrs Annesley. The knowledge that she was thus settled afforded him a measure of ease he had not felt in weeks.
“Miss Bennet is not exactly what I expected,” Richard began the moment Darcy entered. “Granfield was quite certain, when I last saw him in Lisbon, that she would be delighted by my company. He all but guaranteed that the lady would be pleased to accept both my heart and my hand the moment I offered them.Thatis not the impression I formed of her this morning. I would say she appeared rather set against me.”
Darcy halted near the hearth and exhaled slowly through his nose. He found himself unsurprised—though not, he admitted to himself, displeased. When he glanced back at his cousin, he saw Fitzwilliam watching him with a look of quiet curiosity.
“She is a rational lady,” he said at last, turning to face his cousin. “She would not appreciate being spoken of in such a manner, nor does she appreciate insincere speech. If you truly mean to win her regard, you must do more than offer idle flirtation. She is no fading flower, nor is she like those young ladies whose accomplishments are cultivated merely to invite praise, and whose opinions extend no further than what they are taught to admire.” His voice grew firmer as he continued. “Miss Bennet expects to be respected, not merely admired, and she will not tolerate being treated as a trophy to be won.”
Richard’s expression shifted into something wry. “Ah,” he said lightly, “so you have already regretted your words—and, upon discovering who her grandfather is, managed to offer your apologies?”
Darcy’s mouth tightened. He turned away, crossing to the window as though the view might better occupy his thoughts.
“Unfortunately,” he replied, the note of regret unmistakable even to his own ears, “though I knew well before I made her grandfather’s acquaintance that I ought to have apologised, I did not do so until after his arrival at Netherfield. I ought to have acted sooner, yet I hesitated for reasons I cannot entirely explain, even to myself.” He paused, his fingers resting against the window frame. “I will not pretend that his presence did not impress upon me the necessity of it.”
He stood there a moment longer, his gaze fixed upon the grounds below, recalling words he would gladly reclaim if he could. “I knew the instant they left my mouth that they were a mistake,” he continued quietly. “Still, it took me weeks to comprehend how poorly I had acquitted myself. I was unsettled by the events of the summer, and Miss Bingley’s presence only aggravated matters. Neither circumstance excuses my behaviour.” He hesitated, then added, with a care that surprised even him, “Miss Bennet has accepted my apologies, and we are…” He stopped, the word catching unexpectedly. “I believe we are friends now.”
A low laugh sounded behind him. Darcy turned back at once. Richard’s brows were lifted, his amusement evident, but Darcy caught something else there as well, curiosity sharpened by interest. The realisation made him acutely aware of how rarely he spoke so of any young lady, and of how easily the truth had slipped from him just now.
“Well,” Richard said, laughing again, “that is a development I did not anticipate. I confess, Darcy, I should have thought you the last man to involve yourself in such a contest. Still, I ought not to be entirely astonished. Miss Bennet is…” He paused, his expression shifting as though reconsidering his words. “A veryeligible young woman. She will be sought after, and not merely for her person. Her fortune, her connexions…”
“That will do,” Darcy said sharply, turning fully towards him. The irritation that flared within him was swift and unexpected, and he made no effort to disguise it.
He did not care to hear Elizabeth reduced to calculations of advantage—not from Richard, nor from anyone.
Fitzwilliam blinked,momentarily taken aback at the sharpness of his cousin’s tone.
