Chapter 37: Fashion And Instruction
It was five o’clock, and the day had again proved long and torturous. Elizabeth stood upon the little platform enduring endless pinning and fitting while striving to ignore the pain in her feet and the stiffness in her muscles from remaining motionless for so many hours.
At last, she lifted her eyes and saw Mr. Darcy’s carriage draw up before the shop, followed by Mr. Darcy himself descending from it. As always, he was impeccably dressed.
At once, she imagined his scent and the warmth of his body, as he had stood pressed to her the previous evening. It had been a grave impropriety, but she justified it to herself. They would marry within only a few weeks. What could it possibly signify?
“Elizabeth? Do you not hear me, missy?”
Elizabeth started. “Forgive me, Lady Helen. I was not attending.”
The matron raised a brow, and her eyes shifted toward her nephew, who had only just entered the room.
“So, I perceived, ma’am. I asked whether you remembered that this evening the renowned Mr. Baldwin shall attend to do something with your hair.”
“Yes, my lady. I remember.”
The Countess directed her attention toward her nephew.
“Fitzwilliam, send a note to her sister advising that Elizabeth shall not be released until late this evening, though certainly before ten. Once her hair has been attended to, I intend for her to perform her songs. I must hear her myself and determine which pieces she shall perfect.”
“Aunt Helen, is all this truly necessary? Is it not sufficient for Elizabeth to concentrate upon the niceties of introductions to members of the peerage and the other conventions upon which the fabric of society depends?”
She raised a brow and frowned at him.
“No, sir. Trust that I understand the members of my sex better than you do. If Elizabeth cannot perform at least four respectable pieces, she shall become a laughingstock. If we intend to present her to the ton as an accomplished young lady who captured the affections of one of its wealthiest bachelors, then she must display competence upon the pianoforte. Fortunately, her voice is incomparable, though her skill at the instrument remains lamentable.”
She continued without softening her tone.
“Should some spiteful hostess request more than four pieces, I shall prepare myself to play two while she sings.”
Then she directed her attention toward Elizabeth.
“By the by, how many songs do you know well enough to sing in company?”
“Many. Perhaps twenty or more.”
“That is very well, missy. List them out tonight, and I shall select four for you to perfect to a high degree of proficiency upon the instrument, and two more for myself.”
She directed her attention toward Darcy.
“Nephew, Lady Isabella not only commands a considerable dowry, but also performs exceedingly well upon the pianoforte, though she does not sing, so there at least we possess an advantage. Never doubt, Fitzwilliam, that although she rejectedyou, she shall attack any woman bold enough to direct her attention toward you.”
Georgiana released a faint, “Oh, my.”
Lady Helen’s narrowed eyes fixed upon the passing view beyond the carriage window.
“I believe Lady Horatia shall present no obstacle, for she concerns herself more with drink than with men, but Miss Honeyfield…” She paused. “If the Cheltenham tragedy she enacted serves as any indication, there is no predicting how she may conduct herself once she discovers you dangling after another woman. And when she lays eyes upon Elizabeth…”
She looked Darcy over with open disapproval.
“Nephew, I begin to perceive a decided pattern in your tastes. Both women are dark-haired, petite, and shapely without being overly full-figured. She may conclude you deliberately sought out a woman so similar in appearance as to insult her with a replica.”
Darcy’s eyes widened in alarm, while Elizabeth’s color deepened until even the tips of her ears flushed pink. She directed an arch look toward her betrothed.
“Elizabeth, darling, I had no notion that I possessed any particular preference in women. I saw you and fell in love. Never once have I compared you in any respect to Miss Honeyfield. Indeed, now that I reflect upon her, you could scarcely differ more had I deliberately sought a woman her exact opposite. You embody everything kind and good, as I realized very early when I witnessed your care for both Annie in her extremity and Georgiana, who had long stood in need of a true friend.”
He continued, his eyes fixed upon hers.
