“Mr. Bingley, I must insist—”
“Charles!” Miss Bingley swept into the room and their conversation stopped. “You must reprimand the innkeeper at once. The accommodations here are positively medieval. Thismorning’s washing water was scarcely lukewarm, and the linens smell like stale onions.”
“As we will not be returning to this establishment, why should I trouble myself over such a trifling matter?”
“Trifling!” Miss Bingley’s nostrils flared, and two spots of colour bloomed high on her cheekbones. “Have they no understanding of who we are? Our position demands proper deference.” She raised her chin with practiced disdain. “This wretched inn shall receive no recommendation from me.”
“I regret your disappointment with the accommodations,” Jane murmured. The owner had been quite obliging with her family and Mr. Morgan. “Our family has found the service here quite satisfactory.”
Miss Bingley’s cold gaze fell upon Jane, her thin lips curling into an undisguised sneer.
“How unsurprising. Having dwelt among society’s lowest ranks, you must find this ramshackle establishment quite palatial.”
“You would be surprised where my footsteps have trodden,” Jane offered as a mild warning, her placid blue eyes hardening like sapphires. “Your acquaintance with our family was brief and a long time ago. Much has changed since then.”
“Speaking of change,” Miss Bingley interjected, “how fares your youngest sister? Has she found a suitor among her red-coated admirers? Has motherhood agreed with her?”
“My sister has not married, nor has she birthed a child.” Jane’s voice had grown quiet, but steel ran beneath her words. “Where did you hear such nonsense?”
“No one needed to inform me, Miss Bennet.” Miss Bingley’s voice dripped with honeyed venom. “At my brother’s ball, my own eyes beheld your sister draping herself about an officer likeivy on a trellis, her bosoms barely contained within the bodice of her made-over gown. One can easily infer what her future holds.”
Jane stood, fingers trembling in restrained anger, curled against her side.
“I will thank you to keep your coarse opinions to yourself. If I hear any more of this kind of slander, I will advise my father, who will take action.”
Miss Bingley’s laugh was a short, sharp thing. “As if your father would bestir himself from his library. It is widely known he is lackadaisical concerning his daughters’ virtue.”
“Caroline!” Bingley exclaimed. “Stop this shameful discussion at once.” He turned to Jane, his expression collapsing into one of mortification. “Miss Bennet, my deepest apologies for my sister’s behaviour.”
Miss Bingley snorted and muttered, “I only voiced what everyone thought.”
“Be that as it may, your words were unpardonably rude. Please wait for me in your room.”
“May I remind you, brother, of our dreams and goals?” Her voice dropped, acquiring a new and private edge. “Move past this destructive obsession.”
“You may rest assured I have them foremost in my thoughts. Now, leave, before you say something truly unforgivable.”
Miss Bingley turned without a word and withdrew, her eyes passing over Jane as if she was nothing more than a piece of furniture.
“Miss Bennet, I cannot apologise enough for my sister’s conduct.”
Mr. Bingley motioned Jane back to her seat, then positioned his chair uncomfortably close before reaching for her hand. Shedrew back instinctively and fiddled with her gloves to keep him from gaining purchase of her fingers.
“Mr. Bingley, I am uncomfortable with your attention. Please allow more distance between us.” Her voice remained steady despite the rapid flutter of her heart.
His brow furrowed. “Indeed? You once found my nearness agreeable.”
“Indeed, I did — in the past. Circumstances have altered for us both, and I find this closeness inappropriate.”
With visible reluctance, he shifted his chair away.
“Why such formality, Miss Bennet? Do you not recall our Hertfordshire days as pleasant?” he asked with a childish pout she once might have found endearing.
“You, sir, have been gone from Meryton since November last. Those you leave behind do not remain stagnant while you live your life in another part of the country.” His eyes widened at her chastisement, but he remained silent. “I must inform you that, while I enjoyed your company last autumn, I am now betrothed to another gentleman.”
“Betrothed!” The word exploded from his lips like a gunshot.
“Yes, and we are on our way to visit family, to finalise the wedding arrangements.”
