Page 37 of The Sole Love

“I am sorry too,” Jane said. “Yet it seems to me absurd to refuse such a nice family as the Hasketts only to travel for days to the home of…that man.”

“That man asked me to marry him this spring in Kent,” Elizabeth admitted, and her youngest sister dropped her fork in shock.

“What?” Lydia cried, as she did every time she was excited. “And—?”

“And I said no because I thought I could not marry the man who contributed to my sister’s unhappiness.”

“You are mad!” Lydia continued, and Kitty nodded as she did each time her sister spoke. “Jane could find a husband just by glancing at a gentleman, while you—refusing someone like Mr Darcy—that is plain foolishness. He is handsome and wealthy. Who cares about his character?”

Finally, Lydia was right. She had been foolish to refuse Mr Darcy and intended to mend that mistake by saying yes the next time he asked her. And if she had never seen that event coming in the past, their journey to Pemberley could now be her road to happiness.

She wished with all her heart that their plan would succeed and Jane would forget Mr Haskett, but once at Pemberley, her role would be over. Besides discussing Jane with Mr Bingley or asking Mr Darcy to do so, there was little else to be done in that direction. It would be entirely Jane and Mr Bingley’s decision.

Plunged into the same silence in which it had begun, dinner ended with Mrs Bennet quietly leaving the table. Elizabeth felt a constant discomfort in the presence of her mother. She avoided thinking too deeply about the problem. It was strange and distressing, and her father’s attitude only reinforced her resentment. He was profoundly wounded, and there were no signs that he intended to forgive Mrs Bennet.

She had not spoken directly to her mother. In the Gardiners’ house, it had been easy, as her mother had barely left the bedroom, but at home, things became more complicated. She could do nothing but nod when Mrs Bennet said at the end of dinner, “I need to speak with you.”

Only Jane looked worried as they left the dining room together. Lydia and Kitty were happy and laughing, finally freed from the strange atmosphere of their meal. They hoped to hear many amusing stories from Jane, but they were disappointed. Elizabeth had always done things her way—which was never theirs.

“I would have said yes in a moment to the man,” Lydia said, “but our sister is so difficult to understand.”

In other circumstances, Elizabeth would have smiled at Lydia’s comments, but walking behind her mother, she was far from pleased. She tried to think of something to say, but in the parlour, all her ideas disappeared.

“My dear,” Mrs Bennet said, “I need someone to be on my side…”

But the look on her daughter’s face was far from benevolent. It clearly told her that Elizabeth could not be on her side.

“That is not exactly what I meant. I know it is difficult to understand, but at least please promise me that you will try to persuade your father to speak to me, to let me explain…”

“No, Mama, I am sorry, but I will not discuss this with Papa. It is entirely your problem.”

“But he will not listen to me.” Mrs Bennet was almost crying, yet there was little compassion on Elizabeth’s face.

“You are my mother, and I do not know what to do in such a situation.”

On the verge of tears, she was sorry for her mother and angry at the same time. She could see how distressed and repentant Mrs Bennet was, but she could not give her the absolution she wanted.

The look on her mother’s face made Elizabeth sick. All she wanted to do was escape the parlour, run to her room, and hide under a blanket, pretending they were the same family as before. She gathered her courage to tell her mother good night—although she did not seem ready to let Elizabeth go—when the door opened, and Mr Bennet joined them. He looked no angrier than before, but Elizabeth could see how tired he was. He was an old man.

“Mrs Bennet, please let Elizabeth go to her room. You have nothing to discuss with her apart from our preparations for the trip.”

Elizabeth stood and, on an impulse, kissed her mother’s cheek. Then she hurried from the room, hoping her parents would solve their problem. But when she looked back, her father was also leaving the parlour.

As he entered his library, Mr Bennet glanced at the wall facing his old chair. He looked at his favourite painting, the one he had admired many times in the past but lately avoided. It was an enchanting portrait of his wife and Jane by a local artist. Jane was no more than three, a blond angel leaning against her mother, who looked absolutely stunning despite having had two children. In the past, when he was bored or annoyed by his wife, he would gaze at them for a few moments and forgive Mrs Bennet any flaw in her character.

Unfortunately, that magic no longer worked.

Chapter 16

The Darcys and the Gardiners decided to leave London in the morning, dine at Longbourn, and stop for the night at Netherfield. For two days, the estate had been preparing to receive guests. The ladies of Meryton immediately guessed that Mr Bingley was returning. It was not the first time Elizabeth had seen gossip transform every little event into something immensely important.

Three days earlier, the housekeeper at Netherfield had received a message to prepare four rooms for one night. By that same evening, Elizabeth and Jane had been told that Netherfield’s tenant was returning with a large group of friends from London who were to stay for the summer. One of their acquaintances brought them the news, and the young ladies of the neighbourhood were again excited at the prospect of having such a distinguished gathering nearby.

“And you, what plans do you have for the summer?” the Miss Bennets were asked.

“We are going to a friend’s estate in the Midlands,” Elizabeth answered, offering no other details. Still, it was enough to make the young ladies of the neighbourhood happy that the Bennets would not be there when the gentlemen from London arrived.

Elizabeth and Jane continued their stroll, both laughing.