The single word contained an entire maternal judgment.
Thomas and Toby shifted uneasily.
Lydia discovered a sudden fascination with the tassel on her sleeve.
Mr. Wilson bowed. “No lasting harm has been done, madam.”
Mrs. Bennet’s brows rose. “That remains to be seen.”
The boys were sent to the nursery for the remainder of the afternoon. Lydia was instructed to accompany them and assist Miss Porter with copywork, a punishment she received as though condemned to transportation. She kissed Elizabeth’s cheek in passing and whispered, “You are welcome.”
Elizabeth nearly groaned aloud.
Tea was subdued by Longbourn standards. Mr. Wilson behaved with unfailing courtesy, but the easy confidence of recent days had suffered a visible blow. He spoke more oftento Mr. Bennet and Mary than to Elizabeth and departed earlier than usual, pleading letters that required his attention.
At the door he bowed over Elizabeth’s hand with every appearance of respect. “I hope, Miss Elizabeth, that your household may one day permit a gentleman to complete a sentence.”
Elizabeth could not suppress a laugh. “I make no promises.”
His gaze rested upon her face. “Nor, I suspect, can anyone else in this house.”
When he had gone, Elizabeth leaned against the closed door and laughed until tears nearly rose to her eyes, though embarrassment continued to warm her cheeks.
The interruption had spared her from hearing words for which she was not prepared.
It had also postponed a decision that could not be deferred much longer.
Mr. Wilson was kind. He was prosperous, but he also understood parts of her history many gentlemen would dismiss or politely ignore. She knew he intended, sooner rather than later, to ask her to become his wife.
And all Longbourn, from the solemn governess to the most incorrigible of her siblings, seemed determined either to prevent the event or force her to confront what she truly wanted.
In the days that followed, advice came from every corner of the house and in every imaginable form: Mrs. Bennet spoke of Mr. Wilson’s integrity and excellent prospects while insisting that affection ought to precede acceptance; Mr. Bennet observed dryly that a sensible woman could do much worse than a wealthy cousin who admired her mind; Mary quoted different texts on the virtues of esteem within marriage.
Jane reminded her that gratitude and respect were worthy foundations but not always sufficient; Lydia guiltily declared that Mr. Wilson was “very tolerable, but no one sighs over him,”which she considered decisive; and even Kitty, with uncommon seriousness, confessed that she could not picture Elizabeth laughing with him as she did with Darcy.
Elizabeth listened to all of it, turned the matter over repeatedly, and admitted what she had resisted for weeks: Mr. Wilson offered every practical advantage a prudent woman might desire, and she esteemed him sincerely. Each time she attempted to imagine herself as Mrs. Wilson, her thoughts strayed elsewhere, toward a tall gentleman whose silences had become increasingly difficult to ignore.
The Twins Take Command
Darcy encountered the twins on the road to Oakham Mount on a ride taken to escape the antipathy Miss Bingley seemed intent to spread around Netherfield.
The meeting was almost certainly planned.
Thomas and Toby stood beside the stile at the edge of Longbourn’s lower field, each armed with a walking stick and an expression of extraordinary determination. Their caps sat askew. Mud clung to their boots. Toby bore what appeared to be blackberry jam upon one cuff, though how blackberry jam had become involved in a December reconnaissance Darcy could not begin to imagine.
He drew up his horse and peered down at them.
“I am beginning to suspect,” he said, “that you maintain sentries throughout Hertfordshire.”
“We do,” Toby replied at once.
“Lydia assists,” Thomas added.
Darcy dismounted.
Experience had taught him that conversations with the Bennet twins were never conducted satisfactorily from horseback.
He looped the reins over the stile and put his gloves into one hand. “Have I been summoned for praise or censure?”
