The sound of people at the front door made her eyes fly to the room’s entrance. She stood still, listening carefully for clues as to whether it was her brother, or if someone had dared to call at such an inconvenient time. Footsteps approached the door, it slowly opened, and—
“Charles!” Caroline impatiently waved the butler away and pulled her brother to a seat. “Well?”
His grin was full of satisfaction. “He will come.”
“Oh, that is wonderful!” She let out a heavy breath in a rush. “Tell me everything.”
“There is not much to say. I told him I had taken Netherfield and said I needed his advice. I do not, thank you very much, but you know Darcy.”
“He likes to feel useful,” she agreed, her eyes flickering upwards. While she did like the man, he could have an inflated sense of his own knowledge in comparison to others.
“That is a charitable way to view it. I hope this works. I only took the place so you could keep house for me, and he could observe how good a mistress you are.”
Caroline rested a hand on his arm. “Papa wanted you to purchase an estate. It is earlier than you planned to do it, but…”
Bingley made a noise that conferred agreement. “I wouldneverpurchase a house in such an unfashionable neighbourhood, but it will not be so bad. It is just a lease, and Netherfield Park is close to town. I told him Louisa and Hurst would join us sometime in October and we would invite friends. He believed me—why would he not?—and I think that convinced him to accept. He is fastidious enough to find it a little odd to stay with just the two of us.”
“It will be easy to excuse Louisa and Hurst’s absence, but we shall have to be mindful about how we avoid asking others to visit. If we do, we must make sure they are chosen carefully.”
“No eligible ladies drawing attention away from you.” He fixed her with a stern expression. “Remember, Caroline, while Darcy will feel his superiority to simple country folk such as we shall be amongst, he puts great stock in treating people with generosity and appreciation, regardless of their station in life.”
She rolled her eyes. “You mean I should not make it plain how much I hate each and every person I meet? I shall do my best, but none of them had better provoke me. You know I prefer town life, but a month or two in the country impressing him with my suitability to be his wife and mistress of his estate, and he is sure to propose. Then it will be up to you to win Georgiana. Will she join us?”
Her brother shook his head. “She is in the country with the Romsleys and will remain there until the end of the year.”
“That is a shame. I am certain if he saw what a good sister I shall be to her, it would encourage him to propose sooner. Just imagine, Charles! Once I marry him, I shall be niece to an earl and countess. Then, after you marry Georgiana, you will be their nephew. How pleased Papa would be!”
Their father had died soon after Bingley’s twentieth birthday. A factory owner until the birth of his first child, he gave it up with the aim of making his offspring true ladies and gentlemen. On his deathbed, he insisted each of his three children vow to do everything possible to elevate their position in life and ensure the next generation were fully accepted members of theton.Louisa had done her part by catching Hurst—an unattractive oaf, but one with excellent connexions—and it was up to Bingley and Caroline to do theirs. That would be accomplished by marrying the Darcy brother and sister. Shortly before their father’s death, and while Bingley was a student at Cambridge, Mr Darcy had attended some event or another, and the two gentlemen had met. Bingley pursued the friendship thereafter, using his recent bereavement to his advantage. Mr Darcy, too, had lost his father when he was young. Caroline was proud of the way her brother had skilfully deepened his friendship with Mr Darcy. Bingley had appealed to his vanity without annoying him with his persistence. She had grieved for her father, but at the same time, she took satisfaction at their family making such an advantageous connexion.
Returning to the subject of Georgiana Darcy, Caroline said, “Once I am Mrs Darcy, you will have ample opportunity to pursue her. You are my dear brother and will naturally be with us often, and I shall ensure she meets few other young men and thinks meanly of those she does. She is young, to be sure, but if she thinks only of you, if you make her a little in love with you now—but not so much it risks becoming exhausted by the time she enters society—no other man will have a chance of winning her hand. She will be seventeen in less than two years. Mr Darcy will agree she is old enough to marry off then, especially with me—his devoted wife—assuring him she is. That gives us a year and a half for you to convince her you are the very best of men.”
“I have every confidence in myself, especially with a girl like Georgiana, who is sweet and naïve in equal measure.”
Brother and sister exchanged excited smiles and continued to assure each other their scheme could not possibly fail.
CHAPTERTHREE
On a fine early autumn day, Jane and Elizabeth Bennet ambled through the gardens by their home, selecting blooms to decorate the drawing room. The Bennets were entertaining that evening, and it was their task to, as their mother said, “Pretty the room. We want everyone to remember Longbourn is the finest house in the neighbourhood. Apart from Netherfield, and for all we know, the new tenant has terrible taste.”
They had only learnt the estate was let a few days earlier, and, after months of it being vacant, the event had been much talked of since. Little was known of the gentleman who had taken it.
“Mama is very excited about having a new neighbour soon,” Jane said.
Elizabeth sniffed a yellow flower. “I do not trust the information she was given. What would a single young man want with a country house? I could understand if it was an older man, one who prefers to stay home rather than amusing himself in town or with his friends at their estates, or a young man with a family.”
“Perhaps he is tired of always being a visitor and wishes to be the host for once. Or he might be single now, but intending to marry soon. Whatever it is, we shall discover the truth soon.”
Elizabeth peeked into Jane’s basket, which was as full as her own. “We have enough flowers. Shall we go into the back garden and extend our walk? It is such a lovely morning.”
Jane nodded, and the sisters left their baskets where they could easily collect them when they were ready to go indoors. They walked towards the small plot of wilderness, arms linked.
Elizabeth said, “I suppose if our new neighbour—I shall be very glad when we have a name for him—has guests, it will mean more people to join our parties this autumn. That will be agreeable.”
“The next assembly is in a fortnight. Perhaps he and his family and friends will attend. Will William be back in time to go with us?”
Elizabeth took a deep breath of the clean country air before responding. “I am afraid not. In his last letter, he wrote that his business is going well, better than he expected it would, in truth. We must be happy for that. The friend he went to confer with knows someone he wishes William to meet. I understood it to mean a gentleman who might be able to assist him with finding a living, though I do not know more than that.”
“I am glad, but I miss his company.”
