Mrs. Bennet continued.
“He always possessed more ambition than judgment, though whether that has improved with age I cannot say. After my husband died, Alfred wrote with condolences and offered to purchase the business.”
Mr. Bennet’s brows lifted. “Indeed?”
“Yes. For ten thousand pounds.”
Thomas stopped moving his fork.
Toby looked openly scandalized.
Elizabeth could not fully blame them. Even she, who knew perfectly well the value of the business eventually sold to Mr. Gardiner, recognized the absurdity of the offer.
Mrs. Bennet’s expression confirmed it.
“I refused him immediately, of course, and after that I never heard from him again.”
“Until now,” Mr. Bennet said.
“Until now.”
Silence lingered briefly around the table while everyone considered this unexpected development.
Mary spoke first.
“Do you suppose he has experienced some reversal of fortune?”
“Or improvement in it,” Kitty suggested.
Lydia's expression transformed with happiness. “Perhaps he is rich.”
Mr. Bennet regarded her over the rim of his glass. “My dear Lydia, wealth does not invariably improve a visitor.”
“It improves many things.”
“Not conversation,” Mary murmured.
Lydia ignored her.
Mrs. Bennet folded her hands together lightly. “I confess I cannot imagine what Alfred means by appearing now after so many years. We were never particularly intimate.”
Mr. Bennet glanced down at the letter once more.
“He offers no explanation beyond a desire to renew family connections. Which means,” he added dryly, “that he almost certainly possesses another reason entirely.”
Elizabeth suppressed a smile.
Her mother sighed. “That is likely true.”
“When does he arrive?” Kitty asked.
Mr. Bennet consulted the page again. “The twentieth of November. At four o’clock precisely, if we are to trust his confidence in both travel and destiny.”
“That is only a few days away,” Mary observed.
“Yes,” Mr. Bennet replied. “Which means we have very little time to prepare ourselves for whatever manner of man Alfred Barnett Wilson has become.”
Elizabeth watched her mother’s reaction.
