When he finally paused for breath, Charlotte – who had not said a word – was exhausted. Was it possible that she could marry this man? Yes, he had a home and would someday inherit Longbourn; that was worth a good deal. But heavens, a woman would have a good deal to put up with as well, would she not?!
But was he, perhaps, open to instruction?
“Mr. Collins,” she began.
“Yes, Miss Lucas?”
“I do hope I am not putting myself forward in any way, but going back to the situation that caused you to be – was it ejected? – from the Longbourn parlour, do you not see that causing insult to guests of the Bennets was tantamount to insulting the Bennets themselves?”
He stopped walking and turned to her. “Do you truly think so? That the Bennets felt insulted?”
“Of course they did. Anything that you had to convey to the Bennets would be expected to be done privately after the guests in question had left.”
He resumed walking. “I had not considered it in that light,” he admitted. “So I have committed a social faux pas?”
“It does sound that way. Who was in the room?”
“The Bennets, of course. Mr. Darcy and his sister. And a Mr. and Miss Bingley.”
“The Darcys are visiting the Bingleys, who are the nearest neighbours to the Bennets. By insulting the Darcys, you have also insulted the Bingleys, who are their hosts. Surely a rector would be expected to set an example of polite behaviour, would he not?”
Mr. Collins was silent for a long minute. Charlotte had feared that he had not the capacity for silence, so this was promising. Finally, he said, “How do I make amends for this?”
“I advise you to return to Longbourn and apologise to everyone, very sincerely.”
“I am not very practiced in apologies,” he admitted.
“It need not be perfect; it need only be sincere.”
“Will you accompany me?”
“If you wish it, Mr. Collins, of course.”
He offered her his arm, which he had not done before, and together they returned to Longbourn.
Chapter Forty-Three
When Charlotte and Mr. Collins entered the Longbourn parlour, conversation ceased and all eyes went, accusingly, to Mr. Collins.
Only then did Elizabeth and Jane recall their invitation to Charlotte the day before – heavens! Had poor Charlotte encountered their errant cousin in the back garden? Elizabeth went to Charlotte at once. “Charlotte, this is my cousin –“
“Do not concern yourself, Lizzy. We met outside and introduced ourselves.”
“You find us in a bit of a – well, a social disaster, I suppose,” Elizabeth said, trying to smile.
“Mr. Collins told me something about it.”
Elizabeth could only imagine what he had said. “I am so sorry you walked in on all this.”
“No apology needed, Lizzy. Wait; Mr. Collins wishes to address the company.”
She was right. Mr. Collins had walked to the center of the room and was now clearing his throat. “It has been pointed out to me that I have offended everyone in this room. I apologise to all of you; it was not my place to share – well, anything that I might know or might not know – though if Lady Catherine believes –“
At this point, Charlotte caught his eye and shook her head, slightly.
“Ahem! In any case, I sincerely apologise to everyone.” With that, he bowed deeply and retreated to a seat in a corner of the room.
Elizabeth turned to Charlotte. “And what was that about?” she whispered.
