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They separated to circulate round the room, and Elizabeth’s dance card was quickly filled. She was standing quietly talking to Lady Maria when Mr. Darcy returned to her side.

“Let me guess Mr. Darcy, your card is full all but the first.”

“Unfortunately your sister is not here this evening.”

Elizabeth was pleased at his teasing retort. Mr. Darcy had a sense of humour? Who knew.

“Do you trust Lady Maria and myself to find you a suitable partner, one that will understand there are no expectations?”

Darcy looked at her closely, before nodding. Lady Maria set to work immediately. The first four sets of the ball were perfectly fine but Darcy found himself impatient for the supper set and the chance to have conversation with Miss Bennet, even if at the time he did not realise this impatience. Finally, it was the fifth set and they took their places.

“You appear to have survived dancing the first set Mr. Darcy.”

Darcy smiled, the musicians had not yet started and already Miss Bennet was eschewing convention.

“May I ask why you chose that young lady?”

“I will answer but it is better at the supper table, fewer ears.”

Darcy nodded.

“What shall we talk of this evening?”

“If you will indulge me I would like you to talk of your estate.”

Darcy’s heart sank. Were Miss Bennet’s true colours showing?

“What about the estate?”

“I know this will sound unusual but I wished for you to describe it; how much is wooded, pasture land, arable fields, and how you and your steward manage the whole estate.”

Darcy’s sinking heart rebounding in his chest and instead he stared at Miss Bennet, trying to mask his surprise. She was asking questions that Bingley had needed prompting on.

“I will be happy to discuss all this with you Miss Bennet. May I ask the reason?”

The set started but they had a few moments before it was their turn to dance.

“I have maintained the ledgers for my father’s small estate for a decade. I have had ideas at different times as to how to run the estate. But of course as a woman I was unable to do so. I wanted to listen as you explained how you ran your estate and compare it to my own thoughts. It is the chance to learn from a prominent landholder, although it is more for my intellectual curiosity. I will not get the chance to put any of your teachings into practice.”

It was fortunate the dance separated them for several moments as it allowed Darcy to gather his thoughts. Rather than being a fortune hunter wanting to know details of Pemberley, everything reduced to money, Miss Bennet wanted him to talk about running an estate. The questions that he had asked of his father when he had graduated from Cambridge. A wave of sadness unexpectedly hit him, memories of time spent together, and how it had been cut short.

“Are you well Mr. Darcy? Have you twisted an ankle?”

Miss Bennet’s questions brought him back to reality.

“I am well, I assure you. I will explain at the supper table. Let me start with a description of the estate in total and then we will focus in on each of the different aspects.”

Darcy found, just as the Colonel had two weeks earlier, that the time passed in the blink of an eye. He encouraged Miss Bennet to ask questions, otherwise it would have been a monologue. As he escorted her to the supper tables he was struck that it had been no different than many a conversation he had conducted at his club. Once he had returned with food for them both they continued their discussion. The Colonel was also at the table, although talking to the young lady he had danced with. His mother and Lady Maria were also present, everyone was being closely chaperoned.

“I deferred responding during the dance, but I am without injury. Your request brought a wave of nostalgia over me, which caught me by surprise. Your questions were similar to my own to my father. The memories were sharp for a moment.”

“I am sorry Mr. Darcy. I did not mean for my questions to upset you.”

“They did not Miss Bennet, please do not feel bad. Like I said, it was momentary and caught me rather unawares. But as I spoke to you, and answered your questions, the memories turned positive. As I described the woodlands I was reminded of riding the estate with him. It was the same with the arable land, and the outer extents of it where it is no longer productive. I had the wild landscape in my eye as I talked.”

He smiled a wide smile and Miss Elizabeth Bennet was subjected to his dimples for the first time. Her heart went pitter-patter, he was an exceedingly handsome gentleman.

“Now, you promised to tell me the secret of your selection of my first dance partner.”