Page 91 of Near Pemberley

The movement was so sudden that he scarcely had time to react. At first, he sat perfectly still.

Lydia became aware of what she had done almost immediately. Colour rushed into her face. “Oh!”

She stepped back at once. “I beg your pardon. I did not mean… I mean, I did mean it, only…”

Darcy’s expression was one of complete astonishment.

Lydia wished the floor would open beneath her.

Then, to her surprise, a faint smile appeared. “There is nothing to apologise for.”

The simple words nearly undid her again.

Darcy stood. He remained standing for a heartbeat, plainly uncertain what to do. Then, seeing the tears in her eyes, he quietly opened his arms.

Lydia buried her face in his embrace with a cry.

Darcy hesitated only a moment before returning the embrace, one hand resting reassuringly between her shoulders. He closed his arms around her while the girl cried in his arms, just like Georgiana did at Ramsgate.

Without trusting herself to speak, she returned hastily to her chair and fixed her attention upon the carpet.

Darcy wisely pretended not to notice that she spent the next several minutes blinking rather more rapidly than usual.

As Darcy decided to leave, another thought occurred to him. “Miss Lydia.”

She looked up.

“There is one thing I must ask of you.”

The seriousness of his tone immediately caught her attention.

“Of course.”

He seemed uncertain how best to begin. “The circumstances which brought you here are not the only matters which ought to remain private.”

Lydia frowned slightly.

Darcy folded his hands behind his back. “My sister has shown you a confidence which very few people know.”

Understanding dawned slowly. “Oh.”

“Georgiana’s history is not widely known.”

Lydia lowered her eyes. “No.”

“Nor must it become so.”

The words were quiet rather than stern.

“Even the smallest piece of gossip may travel much farther than intended. A careless remark to a friend becomes a conversation. A conversation becomes a rumour. A rumour acquires a life of its own.”

Lydia winced. She knew that better than most. “Her reputation would suffer?”

“Yes.” He hesitated. “Unjustly, but it would suffer nonetheless.”

Lydia nodded. “I understand.”

“Not to friends,” Darcy continued gently. “Not to acquaintances. Not even to family.”