Page 25 of Gold and Good Sense

Elizabeth raised her voice in agreement. “Indeed, you do,” she said. “Our new maids have worked wonders on us all, and I am certain that we shall each make a dozen conquests this very evening.”

Mary rolled her eyes at Elizabeth’s exaggeration, but there was a tiny quirk of a smile on her face as well, which was all Elizabeth had wanted.

“That is quite the reversal from the nervous wreck you were just moments ago,” said Jane.

“Yes, well, your words must have been so wise that they quite took all my fear away,” teased Elizabeth.

~~~~~

Half an hour later, Elizabeth, Jane, and Mary entered Judge Darcy’s drawing room with Lady Esther and Papa. Though they were right on time, already there were at least twenty guests there. Elizabeth barely had a chance to glance around before Judge Darcy was greeting them with enthusiasm.

“Bennet!” he cried. “It is excellent to see you. And of course your lovely daughters are always welcome, though it looks as though you have one more than you had last time.”

“Yes, this is my daughter, Mary,” said Papa.

Mary greeted him with a curtsey while Judge Darcy said, “Quite lovely.” Mary, who had never in her life received a compliment on her appearance from a stranger, blushed. “Now do let me introduce you to some of my friends. I am afraid my family members aren’t here yet, but there are plenty of others you will wish to know.”

As he spoke, Elizabeth could sense new arrivals coming into the room behind her. Lady Esther must have sensed them as well, for she said, “There is no need for us to keep you. I recognize quite a few of the guests here, so I can show the young ladies around, which would free you to greet your other guests.”

“As always, you are the epitome of grace,” said Judge Darcy. “I shall do just that.”

As he moved away, Lady Esther said, “Come, I shall introduce you to Lady Chithers and her son.”

Mr. Chithers turned out to be the younger son of Baron Chithers. The Bennet sisters chatted with him and his mother for a few minutes, but Elizabeth found his conversation, which focused entirely on hunting and dogs, to be decidedly uninteresting.

From there, they were introduced to Lord Lakesby, then to the Safwell sisters, and half a dozen others. By the time dinner was called, Elizabeth’s mind was reeling in an effort to remember everyone she had met.

At dinner, Elizabeth was seated between Baron Chithers and a younger gentleman who Judge Darcy had introduced as his nephew, Mr. Darcy of Pemberley.

Elizabeth spent much of the first course chatting amiably with Baron Chithers, but she could sense that Mr. Darcy occasionally watched her. It felt as though he was examining everything about her, from her manner of speaking to the stitching on the ribbon which rimmed her sleeve.

As the second course was being served, Baron Chithers turned to his neighbor on his other side, so Elizabeth turned to Mr. Darcy and said, “I do hope you are enjoying your evening so far.”

He paused for an uncomfortably long period of time before answering. “Well enough, I suppose. My uncle usually keeps excellent company.”

The way he said this and the way he eyed her as he said so made Elizabeth suspect that he wasn’t certain she qualified as excellent company.

Still, there was no reason to return his rudeness. She said, “If the company this evening is anything to go by, I believe I would have to agree with you.”

Unfortunately, this was not the kind of statement that would stimulate further conversation, and Mr. Darcy did not take up the burden. He merely turned his attention to his food and his wine.

Elizabeth took her cue from him and remained silent. She did not wish to force the gentleman to speak when he had no desire to. Eventually, however, with no conversation to slow down the process of eating, her food ran out well before the next course was ready.

After sitting in silence and idleness for several more moments, she noticed that Mr. Darcy was in the same predicament. With an inward sigh, she said, “Come, Mr. Darcy, I believe we must have some amount of conversation simply to avoid the stares of others as they wonder why two people would sit next to each other in determined silence.”

“As you wish,” he said, though he did not turn towards her. “What subject would you like to canvas?”

“Oh, it could be any number of things,” said Elizabeth airily. “Books, plays, the newspaper. You could tell me what you think of London or whether you prefer the country or the city. If you are feeling particularly ambivalent about all these mundane topics, you could tell me about Pemberley, for I admit I have never heard of it.”

For the first time since the course began, Mr. Darcy turned his gaze directly toward her. There was a hint of humor in his eyes and a tiny quirk to one side of his lips that implied that there was a smile just waiting to burst free.

“I admit to frequent ambivalence to such mundane topics as you listed off,” he said, “but it would feel rather selfish of me to talk only of my own home. Tell me what your home is like. Then we can trade information.”

Elizabeth almost laughed at the way he had once again turned responsibility for the conversation back to her. Still, talking of Longbourn could never be boring to her, so she began. “Longbourn is the name of the village and estate my father owns. Its inhabitants number around twenty or so families. The land is fairly typical of Hertfordshire with softly rolling hills, though none so steep as to prevent farming, except a particularly tall hill a few miles away with the lofty name of Oakham Mount.”

Mr. Darcy’s eyebrows rose in surprise. “Just twenty tenants?” he asked. “My uncle gave me to understand that you and your sisters were heiresses.”

Elizabeth chuckled. “I understand your confusion,” she said. “Up until just a month ago, we were all perfectly normal examples of your average gentleman’s daughters. Then my uncle, who had lived in America for the last twenty or more years, returned with an enormous fortune. He did not long survive the consumption that had plagued him throughout his arduous journey, and his fortune was then divided amongst my sisters and myself.”