Darcy chuckled with the success of his ploy. “I would enjoy that, Bingley.”
“Capital! I will send servants to open the house.We can go to Hertfordshire next week.”
Darcy’s heart leapt. He would see Elizabeth again. Could they continue what they began at Pemberley? At dinner that evening,Bingley told Georgiana of his plan to return to Netherfield.“Your brother consented to join me,” he shared. Georgiana smiled knowingly at Darcy, but she said nothing. She knew him well enough to know the uncertainty he felt in returning to Elizabeth’s home. Everything could change in the next few weeks.
She hugged him a bit longer than usual and reached up to caress his cheek when they departed for Netherfield that mid-September morning. “I will say a prayer for your happiness, Brother.” He smiled weakly at her as he boarded the coach; Darcy could think of nothing but Elizabeth.
“Darcy, we have been at Netherfield for two days now,” Bingley mused, “and Mr. Bennet has not called. Do you think we should call on him instead?”
“Let us wait until tomorrow to see if the situation changes. If not, then, we can offer our own civilities.”
“Tomorrow it is then,” Bingley stared out the window.
There were few places at Netherfield where images of Elizabeth did not dance through Darcy’s head. He saw her on the staircase as she was on that last Sunday; he saw her carrying the water to her sister’s room; he saw her reaching for the book of poetry in the library; the image haunted his waking and his sleeping hours.Tomorrow, he thought,tomorrow will tell whether I declare my love to Elizabeth Bennet again.
Riding next to Bingley as he entered the pathway leading to Longbourn, both gentlemen were silent, deep in the wonderment of what the next hour would bring. Bingley wondered could he renew his relationship with Jane Bennet; Darcy wondered how Elizabeth would welcome him. Of course, this was not Pemberley. The excellent company he found in Mr. and Mrs. Gardiner would be replaced by the simple-mindedness of Mrs. Bennet, but what Mrs. Bennet said did not interest him. Darcy had a dual purpose forthis visit: assess Jane Bennet’s feelings for Bingley and Elizabeth Bennet’s feelings for him.
Upon being announced and entering the room, Darcy’s eyes sought only Elizabeth.Weeks had passed since he saw her; the last time she cried over Wickham and Lydia, and relieving her distress became his only concern. He observed her for weeks last fall, memorizing her every gesture and the full gamut of her emotions; therefore, immediately, he recognized her uneasiness—the source of the uneasiness questionable. Was it his presence here at Longbourn? Was it that others might find out about Hunsford and Pemberley? Was it embarrassment of his knowing about Lydia?Let me first see how she reacts to my presence; then I will decide my next step.
On their appearance, Elizabeth blushed, but she made both gentlemen a curtsy before returning eagerly to her needlework. Mrs. Bennet warmly welcomed Bingley, offering him her favorite chair and refreshments. Barely civil, she acknowledged Darcy only by name. He moved to the side where he could see both Elizabeth and her elder sister. Jane Bennet looked a little paler and more sedate than he expected; but she received them with tolerable ease and appeared to be accepting of Bingley’s presence at her home. If Jane Bennet held no resentment, Charles stood a chance with her. Darcy wished her sister would show him some preference.As far as he could tell, Elizabeth ventured only one glance in his direction. He wanted to be alone with her, to hear her voice, to see her smile; he wanted only to profess his continuing love. Instead, he swallowed hard and forced himself to say,“Miss Elizabeth, may I inquire about the health of your aunt and uncle?”
“They are well, Sir,” she stammered.
“I am pleased to hear it.”
“They were,” she tried to look at him, but, in reality, she spoke to the floor, “so pleased with Pemberley. My uncle still speaks fondly of enjoying the sport he found there.”
“He will always be most welcome there.”
Before the conversation could continue, however, Mrs. Bennetinterrupted with a declaration of the benefits of having a married daughter so well situated.The mention of Wickham’s name sent a shiver down Darcy’s spine with the remembrance of the circumstances in which he found Wickham and Lydia. Too mortified to look at Darcy, Elizabeth notably stiffened as Mrs. Bennet asked Mr. Bingley if he read the wedding announcement in the news; however, Darcy could not force his eyes from her.
“I did see it; may I offer my congratulations,” Bingley replied. Darcy did not join the conversation for fear his tone would betray his thoughts of George Wickham.
Mrs. Bennet lamented Wickham’s removal to Newcastle. “Mr. Wickham has been stationed in the North. I have no idea when we might see our dear Lydia again.” Darcy, had she known, rejoiced in Wickham’s removal.The commission he purchased for his former friend was under a very strict commanding officer, and Darcy hoped the officer would break Wickham’s insolence. Mrs. Bennet’s next remark offered another cut leveled at Darcy.“Thank Heavens, he hassomefriends, though perhaps not so many as he deserves!”If Mrs. Bennet only knew what Wickham truly deserves.
Her words forced him to once more turn his back on Elizabeth’s family in order not to respond to the woman, but if he looked at Elizabeth, he would have seen her shame. His having to bear her mother’s feeble command of social graces made her miserable, and she could hardly keep her seat. Seeing him thus treated forced her to exert herself and speak, “Mr. Bingley, do you plan to stay long in the country?”
Her words reached Darcy as nothing else could; even the simplest phrase added to the image he drew of her.The words she said did not fascinate him; it was the way she responded to each situation—how she knew him—had known he needed her at that moment to deflect her mother’s attention. He turned back to add tohis portraitof Elizabeth Bennet.
Nervousness echoed in Bingley’s response; Darcy for a moment forgot he should also observe Miss Bennet’s reaction to Charles.“I hope to stay several weeks, Miss Elizabeth—for the shooting. Severalweeks would be most gratifying.” Bingley hesitated as he shot a quick glance at Jane Bennet.
Both Elizabeth and Darcy saw how Bingley’s response to Elizabeth’s question affected Jane Bennet. Darcy wondered why he never saw the admiration she held for Bingley before. Elizabeth glowed with seeing the spark between Jane and Bingley being rekindled. Darcy wished she would look at him with such persuasion. Elizabeth tried to protect him from her mother but was that because she feared further censure of her family or because she had feelings for him?
When Bingley and Darcy rose to take their leave, Mrs. Bennet issued an invitation to Mr. Bingley for dinner in a few days’ time. “You are quite a visit in my debt, Mr. Bingley, for when you went to town last winter you promised to take a family dinner with us as soon as you returned. I have not forgot, you see.” A less civil invitation was also issued to Darcy. “Of course, you may join us too, Mr. Darcy.”The gentlemen were shown to the door.As the Bennet family gathered around, there was no way for Darcy to speak to Elizabeth again. His bow and her curtsy were all they could manage.
Arriving back at Netherfield, Bingley felt ecstatic, his hopes secretly coming true. Jane Bennet did not turn from his attentions as he successfully engaged her over and over. She smiled at him, laughed lightly at his attempts at humor, and made eye contact with Charles repeatedly.
Darcy, on the other hand, felt misery. Elizabeth appeared uneasy from the beginning; she answered his questions, and her voice got stronger with each response, but she barely looked at him and offered him no encouragement. His hopes were overturned as scenes from previous encounters at Netherfield and Hunsford flashed before his eyes.You were the last man in the world whom I could ever be prevailed upon to marry. . . . I hear such different accounts of you as puzzle me exceedingly. . . . I have every reason to think ill of you. . . . Had you behaved in a more gentleman-like manner . . . .All the old insecurities returned. Would he never be able to make her love him? Hethought positively when they were alone at Pemberley, but here she was so different. How was he to judge her sentiment? Maybe he should leave.The feel of the hand she offered him to be helped into her uncle’s carriage said otherwise; the backward stare as they departed said she cared; the touch of the petals of the boxwood rose said she believed in constancy. Which images? Which images should he believe about Elizabeth Bennet? He would wait until after the dinner. Possibly, it was the shock of his being at Longbourn. Possibly, she was embarrassed by her mother’s actions. Possibly, she was more concerned with Jane’s welfare. All of these possibilities were characteristic of Elizabeth. He would try to be calm and allow things to take their course. Darcy would wait to see if she was different at the dinner; then he would decide whether to leave or not. Besides, he could assess Jane Bennet’s estimation of Bingley before he confessed his deceit. He told himself all these things. Surely, if Elizabeth cared for him as he hoped she did, their hearts would find each other before long.
Several of the Bennet sisters welcomed Bingley and Darcy upon their entrance to Longbourn. Elizabeth took their greatcoats and briefly greeted Darcy with a hint of a smile and an obligatory curtsy.When they repaired to the dining room, Darcy hoped to be seated close to Elizabeth, but finding himself seated instead close to Mrs. Bennet dashed those hopes. Bingley found his seat near Jane Bennet; oh, for such pleasure with Elizabeth! He could hear nothing of what she said. Only once did he notice her attentions toward him. It was when Bingley placed himself next to Jane; Elizabeth gave Darcy a triumphant look, and he bore it with presumed indifference. The dinner included venison and soup. Darcy attempted to make conversation with Mrs. Bennet by complimenting her on the serving of partridge as part of the meal. She clearly made a statement with the menu, and his good breeding required he take notice, but he would rather take notice of her second daughter’s eyes. Generally though, Darcy spoke very little to anyone at the table.
He hoped for the opportunity of some conversation with Elizabeth as the evening progressed; all he needed was a few moments alone. He would ask her to meet him privately, and then he would ask her once again to marry him. Useless and mundane time was spent in the drawing room with the gentlemen; he was anxious to return to the ladies. When the gentlemen entered the drawing room, Darcy planned immediately to approach Elizabeth, but she served coffee to the guests and was surrounded by ladies who appeared to be protecting her for they stood close by. He moved toward her, but one of the girls moved in closer, taking on a conspiratorial stance. He, therefore, took his cup and walked away to another part of the room.
The evening went badly, but, eventually, Darcy brought back his coffee cup. Elizabeth, thankfully, seized the opportunity of saying, “May I inquire about Miss Darcy?” She even forced herself to look at him.
“Georgiana is at Pemberley with Mrs. Annesley. She will remain there until the Festive Season.”
“Then her friends have gone to Scarborough?”
