Page 79 of Mr. Darcy Comes to Town

The gig rolled to a stop, Mr. Darcy set the brake, tied the reins off, and leapt down. Lizzy set her bundle of apron and guinea pig on the seat. Mr. Darcy hurried around and lifted her to the ground. Then, he took her hands gently in his.

“Now, pray do not hate me,” he said softly. “My dear Miss Elizabeth, I swear to never eat any of your pets.”

“Or your own, I hope,” she replied, sounding breathless to her ears.

“Or mine,” he swore. Then, to her utter amazement, Mr. Darcy lifted her hands to his lips and kissed them. After a moment, he released her hands and stepped back. “Shall we take Jeffry into the manor and share him with the Lucas children?”

“Yes,” she said, hoping she sounded as usual. “I put him on the seat.”

Mr. Darcy turned to collect him. He came back to her side, spreading his open hands. “Uh, Miss Elizabeth? I believe Jeffry is off on another adventure.”

“Heavens,” she said, frowning and looking around at the gravel drive and the nearby grass. He was not there. She shaded her eyes and looked up into the sky. “I see no raptors who might have carried him off.”

“It is, as you say, magic,” Mr. Darcy said, his brow furrowed. “How odd.”

*

Jeffry settled on Mary’s lap. He felt her surprise and purred to calm her reaction.

“What are you doing here?” she whispered to him. “How did you get out of your enclosure?”

With no intention of answering either question, he surveyed the Lucas’ family drawing room. Maria Lucas sat on the gold and blue carpet, behind a painted puppet stage, one hand shoved into a gray papier-mâché donkey head and the other shoved into a puppet that looked to be a papier-mâché king. To Jeffry, the story plot seemed to be that the donkey refused to let the king ride him. Mary and Georgiana sat side-by-side on a sofa, watching the show, the four youngest Lucas children ranged on the floor before them.

Georgiana squealed softly, “It is Jeffry.” Reaching for him, she asked, “May I hold him?”

“Of course you may,” Mary said, lifting him off her lap and handing him to Darcy’s sister.

The next thing Jeffry knew, he was being cuddled into Georgiana’s chest. “He is so soft,” she whispered.

I am soft. Yes, she’s right about that. Why am I here? Jeffry asked himself. If I must examine my reasoning, then I will admit to myself that I was showing off. Aunty is going to notice, and I will be in soooo much trouble. Jeffry sighed inwardly, kicking himself for being such an idiot. I should’ve gone with Lizzy and Darcy on their drive today. Now, I don’t know what they spoke about, or how they reacted to each other. Sure, Lizzy’s choice of reticule had no room for me, but I could have influenced her so she’d take a larger one. Oh, dear, I must stay on task.

“Children,” Georgiana was saying.

Pay attention…what is happening?

“Look what I have here,” she said.

Oh, no, the puppet show is over! Jeffry tensed. And here they come!

“What is it, Miss Darcy?” one of the boys asked, crawling toward them on hands and knees rather than bothering to stand. “Is it a rat?”

Chapter Thirteen

A rat? A rat! Do I have a long, skinny, naked tail? I do not, thank you very much.

“No, it is not a rat,” Mary informed them. “He is something new. Harry brought him home a few days ago.”

“What is it, Miss Mary?” one of the girls asked. “Is it a baby bunny?”

That’s better than a rat, at least.

“Not a baby bunny, either,” Georgiana revealed. She pulled a cushion over and settled him on it.

“Goodness,” another girl said, pointing at him, “he has no ears.”

I do so have ears. What ignorant children.

“He does have ears, silly,” the first boy said. “But they are small.”