Mrs. Collins’s father and sister have come to stay at Hunsford. SirWilliam spoke highly of you, as was natural, and of making your acquaintance in Hertfordshire; the younger Miss Lucas is quite pretty, in a plain sort of fashion, and I find her very attentive to my advice. I am sure she gets no such direction at home, and I plan to spend some time with her.
Good! His aunt’s reproofs could be directed toward someone besides Georgiana. He made a mental note to speak to his cousin about Lady Catherine’s censure of Georgina; he did not like anyone interfering in his sister’s life.
There is another member of the Collins’s party at the Parsonage. Mrs. Collins’s friend Elizabeth Bennet has also come for a visit.
Darcy reread that line several times to be sure his eyes did not play tricks on him.Elizabeth? His Elizabeth?Could she really be at Rosings Park residing within an easy walk of his aunt’s house? Reading on, Darcy realized his eyes did not deceive him. His aunt actually spoke of Elizabeth.The irony of it all! Elizabeth Bennet stayed onhisaunt’s estate.
I understand you also made the acquaintance of Miss Bennet. My pleasure in introducing you has been lost. I will forego that pleasure with you, but, at least, it will still be my honor to introduce the Collins’s party to your cousin, the colonel.
Miss Bennet, I find, is a very outspoken young lady. She has been allowed to run free with little reproach from her parents. She offers her opinions without regard to station in life; this is most unusual for one so young. I cannot say I approve of her manners or her upbringing. She is one of five daughters, as you know. Her parents saw no benefit in exposing any of them to the masters. None of them draw; Miss Bennet’s talents on the pianoforte are limited. I told her she could only improve without more practice. Besides having no governess to supervise her upbringing, the worst offense I find in her parenting is all five daughters are out in society at the same time.The youngest are outbefore the eldest has married.When I expressed my disdain, you would not believe what Miss Bennet said.
Darcy laughed out loud for the first time in months.Without being told her response, he could just imagine Elizabeth’s retort, accompanied by the “flash” in her eyes, a shift of her shoulders, and the hint of a mischievous smile. His sister could learn much from Elizabeth Bennet; he knew Lady Catherine did not intimidate her.
Her reply was very disrespectful. She seems to think having all five daughters out at the same time is perfectly acceptable. Miss Bennet believes her younger sisters deserve their share of society and amusement as much as does she and her elder sister. She indicated it was not fair to her younger sisters to be denied their share of fun and courtship just because neither she nor her elder sister have had the means or the inclination to marry. Miss Elizabeth does not feel it would be “very likely to promote sisterly affection nor delicacy of the mind.” I was astonished by this response. I hope to temper her rough spirits before she leaves Hunsford.
His aunt may wish to temper Elizabeth’s spirits, but he knew Lady Catherine was no match for Elizabeth Bennet.
Miss Bennet just needs an example of proper society to complement her undeveloped genteel attributes. Sir William, I am afraid, will depart before your arrival, but the ladies will remain another month.We will invite them to Rosings if you so wish to renew their acquaintances.Your cousin Anne and I look forward to your and Edward’s stay at Rosings.
Lady C
Elizabeth, possibly the first to do so, obviously, dared to challenge the dignified impertinence of Lady Catherine. So, Elizabeth stayed at Rosings; he was glad to know prior to his arrival. It would be a good test of how well he recovered from her charms. In thinkingso, Darcy did not acknowledge the swirl of his emotions when he feared Collins married Elizabeth as being anything more than a true concern for her well-being and happiness. He would be able to meet Elizabeth again as indifferent acquaintances; Darcy was sure of that fact.
His cousin Edward Fitzwilliam came to Pemberley on the nineteenth. He would spend a few days with Georgiana before they departed for Rosings. Along with Darcy, the good colonel served as Georgiana’s guardian, and he adored her nearly as much as did Darcy.
“Cousin, Georgiana told me about Elizabeth Bennet,” Edward teased.“Now, I am most anxious to meet our aunt’s visitors.At first, I was not looking forward to meeting a ‘country miss with poor manners,’ but Georgiana seems to feel you hold Elizabeth Bennet in some esteem. If she impresses Fitzwilliam Darcy, she would be something extraordinary, I dare say.”
“Pull in your tendrils, Edward,” Darcy cautioned. “Miss Elizabeth is not for you.As the younger son of an earl, you need to find a woman of wealth to keep you in style. I am afraid although Miss Elizabeth is a gentleman’s daughter, she has no wealth of which to make her a person of interest for a man in your position.”
“I see,” Edward began. “That is my bad luck. Some day I will find a wealthy woman with whom I might also find affection. I do not want to just marry for money; some level of love is not too much to ask is it, Fitz?”
“I never knew you felt that way.” Edward’s words stunned Darcy.
“Oh, well, at least,” Edward shook it off, “Miss Elizabeth may help brighten our time at Rosings, can she not?”
“Miss Elizabeth, I found, can brighten most any room,” Darcy whispered to himself.
CHAPTER 7
“This would be nothing if you really liked him.”
As the carriage rolled toward the inevitable, Darcy tried to mask the restriction encompassing the core of his being. He hid behind the newspaper while his cousin snoozed in the seat across from him. His eyes looked at the newsprint, but none of the words penetrated his brain. In the next few days, he would be facing Elizabeth Bennet once again. He focused all his energies into forgetting Elizabeth. He went through the turmoil, chastising himself repeatedly for losing control when confronted with her. Darcy questioned himself:Why had he let Elizabeth speak to him as such? Why had he allowed her to possess him physically as well as emotionally? Why had he questioned who he was and what he valued? More importantly, why had he considered making her a part of his life? Yes, there was a physical attraction, but should he lay aside all his principles—all his values for physical beauty? Of course, he could have Elizabeth; Darcy never saw a woman he could not have, but he could not even think of making her the mistress of Pemberley.
It was funny; Darcy often visualized Elizabeth at Pemberley—the two of them together—Elizabeth and Georgiana; the images were always so clear! Yet, he never imagined making her his wife. That was the step in the equation he could not quite figure out. He instinctively knew Elizabeth belonged at Pemberley; she, naturally, fit into his plan for the estate, but marriage to Elizabeth could not be reconciled in his thoughts. It was not as if Darcy would ever dishonor Elizabeth Bennet; he did not think of her that way; his thoughts of Elizabeth were always honorable. He just could notaccept actually professing his feelings for her and making a proposal. He could not marry her! Being a Darcy would never allow him to do so.
The splendid colors, which adorned Lady Catherine’s estate, were lost on him. Staring out the carriage’s window, a pair of thickly lashed watery-green eyes sparkled back at him. His cousin, being finally aroused from his journey’s boredom, began a watch for Mr. Collins. “I understand,” Edward laughed, “from our aunt that Collins’s book room fronts the road.The chap dutifully watches for the carriages to come along. I want to see if he is watching for our arrival.You know our aunt apprised him of our visit. Look, Darcy, is that he? He resembles a windup doll; Collins is waving frantically. Wave, Darcy!”
“I do not think waving at our aunt’s clergyman is in order,” Darcy grumbled.
“Darcy . . . Edward, at last you arrived,” Lady Catherine intoned. “Anne and I both expected you hours ago. Anne’s health would not allow her to wait longer. She went up to rest.You will renew your relationship at dinner.”
“We apologize,Aunt,” Darcy bowed to his mother’s eldest sister. “The roads were affected by last week’s weather.”
“We are most joyous at seeing you, Lady Catherine,” the colonel added quickly. “I will be happy to see Anne feeling better and joining us this evening; it has been too long since we saw her.”
“Excuse us, Lady Catherine,” Darcy interrupted,“we will freshen from our travels and join you shortly for some tea.”
As the two gentlemen left the blue salon, Darcy gave his cousin a wary glance.“What?” Edward queried.
