Page 24 of Idle Gossip

Darcy hummed to himself. He had missed Elizabeth. Being trapped at Netherfield was unbearable. Miss Bingley would not leave him alone, and so he had been forced to play an elaborate game of cat and mouse. He would hide in a far-off room and stay there until she inevitably found him. Only when in his bedchamber was he left to himself.

“I am glad there is a break in the weather,” Bingley said. “Tomorrow is Sunday. We might have been forced to wait until Monday to call on Longbourn.”

“I am as eager as you to see my Miss Bennet,” Darcy replied.

How fortuitous it was that the gossip from town had resulted in his happiness! Darcy had no cause to repine.

They arrived at Longbourn and were shown into the drawing room. Darcy noted Elizabeth’s changed demeanor immediately. Worry coursed through him, but he pasted on a smile and came to her side.

“Are you well?” he asked in a low voice.

“Hardly.” She bit her lip. “We must speak privately.”

Darcy nodded.

“There is a small parlor down the hall. It is the last door on the left. Go there and I shall follow in a few minutes.”

Darcy did as he was bid, excusing himself and stepping from the room. He found the parlor with ease and took to pacing as he waited for Elizabeth.

She came but three minutes later.

“What is the matter?” he asked.

“Sit.”

He joined Elizabeth on the settee. She sat further from him than she had last time they sat together, and he felt it keenly.

“There is something you must know,” Elizabeth began.

Darcy listened with astonishment as she told him of Miss Lucas’s call and her confession.

“So, you see, our futures have been materially changed due to her interference.”

It changed nothing for him. “You do not owe me an explanation, though I admit I am pleased to know from whence the rumors came.” He was in love with Elizabeth and wished to make her his wife. But he could not do it if it made Elizabeth miserable.

“If you wish, we can end the courtship,” he murmured.

“Do you wish it to end?”

Darcy could not decipher the meaning behind her expression. He hoped it was dismay and horror, but he could not tell.

“Your wishes are more important than mine. I was given everything I wished, and you were thrust into a situation you abhorred. I cannot hold you to the arrangement you accepted under duress.”

He is giving me an opportunity for escape. How had she thought him arrogant and dishonorable? Selfish? Elizabeth shook her head, her shoulders drooping.

“You need not decide now.” He reached out and took her hand.

“You are supremely confident that I shall decide in your favor,” she said, falling back on humor to ease her discomfort.

“Is that a failing? Elizabeth, I wish for you to be happy. The Netherfield Ball is in a few days. If you wish to announce to the world your choice, you have only to accept my offer to stand up with me.”

“You are too good—far better than I deserve. I am an obstinate, headstrong girl who gives her opinions rather decidedly. What do you see in me?”

Darcy’s smile was gentle. “I see a force to be reckoned with, a lady who will be my life partner rather than a subservient bride with no opinions of her own. I do not want any other, Elizabeth. But I shall respect your decision.”

They rejoined the others, and Elizabeth managed to maintain her equanimity until the gentlemen departed. Jane cast quizzical glances in her direction, but she ignored them. She needed time to think in private.

Later, when she was safely alone, Elizabeth considered the situation. She had what she wished—freedom to end the courtship with Mr. Darcy before it went on any longer.