Page 96 of Mr. Darcy’s Diamonds

Elizabeth had looked ill, but she apparently understood where the children at the Foundling Hospital came from, and she knew by now that Wickham had increased its burden.

Yes, he was doing all he could to be a friend to Elizabeth and had been getting to know her far better in the process. He had assumed he knew her well before, but of course he had been arrogant in that assumption, as in others. Darcy hoped she was coming to understand him better, too, and he thought he should soon be able to tell her of his love, which increased with each new fragment of her he uncovered. He was waiting only for his strength to be tested once Miss Bingley and Miss Bennet pulled them into society in a few days. Once he was sure he could be a support to Elizabeth and not a disappointment to her, he would confess his love.

It had not been easy to treat her with only casual friendship. He suspected her footman had caught him looking at her longer than a friend would, but he gave no sign it mattered to him. Perhaps Matthew was charged with stepping in only in case of physical danger. Darcy could not resent the presence of such a protector.

“Jane! I am so happy you have come.”

Elizabeth embraced her cousin in the Gardiners’ drawing room.

“Lizzy, you look very well. I was concerned by your letters after you said Mr. Wickham stopped calling, but it seems you really are unaffected by him. I had thought you liked him.”

“Yes, well, that was only when I first knew him. I very soon discovered he was a rake and a gambler.”

“Oh, dear. You did not mention that. Are you certain?”

“I am. Let us put him out of our minds now. Come, what are your plans for your month in London? Do you have every day planned out with Mr. Bingley and his sisters?”

Jane nodded, and they sat together on the settee just as Aunt Gardiner came in. Jane stood to embrace her, and then all three settled in to discuss the coming weeks.

Mr. Bingley and Mr. Darcy came for dinner that evening, and Elizabeth took every opportunity to observe the betrothed couple. After she had overheard his plans to visit a brothel in July, she was determined to see whether Mr. Bingley was good enough for Jane. She had not been convinced in Hertfordshire, but after their interactions in London this year, she was becoming more sure of him. Still, she wished to see how he behaved in Jane’s company and around town.

After dinner, as she prepared tea and coffee, Mr. Darcy came and stood next to her.

“Has Mr. Bingley done something to offend you, Miss Elizabeth?” He asked too low for anyone else to have heard, but she still looked around the room to be sure.

“Why would you think such a thing?”

“You watched him like a hawk throughout dinner as though waiting for him to drop something on which you might pounce.”

She laughed, but she could tell Mr. Darcy did not believe her false humor. He raised his brows in question.

“He has done something, if you must know, and I will now be sure he respects my cousin well enough to care for her properly as his wife.”

“If you find against him, you will inform your cousin? Does she know how her betrothed has offended you?”

“She does not, and I would rather not have to tell her.”

“I see. When did Mr. Bingley offend you?”

“Last summer.”

“Hmm. He was at Oxford in the spring, so I would guess he offended you in…July, perhaps? Was it before or after he proposed to Miss Bennet?”

Elizabeth narrowed her eyes as she bore into his, trying to decipher what he knew. Surely, he had not seen her at that ball! He could not have known she heard their conversation. Still, she felt her cheeks warming and looked away from his gaze to prepare her uncle’s coffee.

“When did he offend you, Miss Elizabeth?”

“It was July, yes. A few weeks before he and my cousin announced their betrothal.” She lifted her chin in challenge and looked into his eyes again. “You are laughing at me!”

“I certainly am not. No laughter or even a chuckle has escaped my lips.”

“I see it in your eyes. You are definitely laughing at me.”

Now he smiled but quickly put on a stoic face again. Except for his dancing eyes.

She placed a hand on her hip and tilted her head. “Go on, then. What is so funny?” He may laugh at her embarrassment over the conversation she had heard, but she did not think he would dare to mention it.

“I cannot imagine what you mean.”