“Soon? Yes, I am sure it will be.” Bingley ran a hand through his hair.
“Our brother’s parents simply do not want to let them leave. They aresofond of Louisa, you know.”
Mr Darcy’s eyebrows flickered upwards, and she wondered whether she had used that excuse recently. It would be like him to remember everything she would prefer him to forget while overlooking everything she wanted him to notice, chiefly her desire to be his wife.
“I do not recall you telling me about your plans to entertain. You have been here several weeks already and have received many invitations.”
Caroline and her brother regarded each other, and just before the silence became marked, she said, “My brother and I intended to discuss that very issue this morning. It is time for us to welcome some of our neighbours to Netherfield.”
“We have delayed planning any sort of party, hoping Louisa and Hurst would be here by now, but, as Caroline said, Hurst’s family begged them to stay longer. We shall do something soon, in another fortnight or so. You will stay, will you not? I recollect you saying Miss Darcy and your family were not expecting you until Christmas.”
“I am at liberty for the present.” Darcy carefully folded his napkin and placed it on the table. “I shall leave you to decide how you would like to repay the generosity with which you have been greeted. I have a letter to my sister to finish. I shall tell her I plan to remain here a little longer.”
“Dear Miss Darcy! Do give her my love and tell her Charles and I are desolate she could not join us,” Caroline said, smiling broadly.
“I can, if you wish it, but I believe you sent her the same message in my last letter.”
“It is no less true today than it was then, eh, Caroline?” Bingley said.
Somehow, she managed to smile. She felt exhausted. It was because of her fears that everything was going wrong. She had been too hopeful, too foolishly certain that being in the country would encourage Mr Darcy to propose and she and her brother would be closer to achieving their goals.I must find a way to rally my spirits. The fight is not over!
A short time later, she and Bingley were in his study, the door closed against eavesdropping servants. No sooner had they sat down than she confessed what she had told Mr Darcy about Miss Elizabeth marrying Mr Collins.
“I should not have said it, but I do not like the way she demands his attention whenever we are in company. He ismine, and I shall not let her have him. Besides, she and Mr Collins are evidently good friends, so why should he not marry her? Very likely he intends to, but she is the type of girl who will throw herself at a richer man and feel no shame at abandoning her current lover if she happens to catch a better one.”
“You worry too much. Darcy is too proud of his position in life to marry someone like that, as I have said before. Even if he enjoys talking to her, he will remember himself, and as soon as he looks about him for a wife, his gaze will land on you, and he is sure to realise he could not do better. About what you told him, what does it really matter? I doubt he cares, and there is nothing you can do to unsay it. With luck, we shall not be here long enough to discover whom any of the Bennet girls marry.” He yawned. “Darcy is right that we cannot avoid having some sort of party. What will it be? Cards would not be enough. Dinner? A musical soirée?”
Caroline contemplated their choices as she ran her hands along the smooth lilac fabric of her gown.
“If I am going to impress Mr Darcy, andfinallymake him propose, it should be something grand.” Inspiration struck, and her eyes met his. “What do you think of a ball? There can be no better way to show him what an excellent hostess I can be. Granted, a ball here is nothing to the elaborate affairs we will host in town or at Pemberley, but it will serve its purpose. Even better, it will take several weeks to make the arrangements, which will keep him here that much longer.
“He will ask about us inviting our friends from town, and we shall have to make some excuse he will believe. I cannot bear the notion of such fashionable people coming here. But let us discuss that another time. What do you think?”
Bingley squeezed her arm. “An elegant ball will more than repay everyone’s hospitality, and we shall be so busy dancing, there will be very little time for conversation!”
“You are a very clever man, my dear brother.”
They shared a hearty laugh before sketching an outline of the event.
CHAPTERTWENTY-THREE
On Monday, Jane wished to call on Miss Bingley, and Mrs Bennet decided that she and Elizabeth should accompany her.
Elizabeth had no wish to see Miss Bingley, whom she still did not like. She could not explain why, and thus continued to keep her opinion of the lady to herself. However, by going to Netherfield Park, she might see Mr Darcy. His mood had been a little odd at the dinner party. Try as she might, Elizabeth could not understand what had happened. When the two of them had been talking, he had been his usual friendly self. Once William had joined them, Mr Darcy had become a little quieter, and he had been positively distracted and even cool when he had said good night. Whatever had been the cause of his changeable manner, she hoped seeing him again would show that it was a thing of the past.
Unfortunately, Mr Darcy was not there.
“He discovered he knows one of the militia men—Colonel Forster—and went to see him,” Mr Bingley explained.
“He will be so sorry to have missed your visit.”
The sound of Miss Bingley’s voice made Elizabeth’s teeth itch. Her voice was tinged with smugness this morning.
Mrs Bennet examined first the brocade of the bergère chair in which she sat, then took in the remainder of the room. “I dare say we shall not miss him. How could we, when we have your excellent company? How finely you have furnished this room! It was in a shocking state the last time I saw it. So old-fashioned and cheap.”
Elizabeth made herself comfortable on a settee and let her thoughts wander as the usual topics of a morning call were addressed, chiefly the weather and titbits of gossip. Within a few minutes of their arrival, Jane and Mr Bingley had their heads bent together, engaged in a private conversation and ignoring their companions. Mrs Bennet spoke at Miss Bingley rather than with her, providing her with a comprehensive history of Netherfield’s owners.
When refreshments were brought in, Mrs Bennet demanded Mr Bingley and Jane’s attention, and to Elizabeth’s surprise, Miss Bingley sat next to her.
