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I bowed. “Yes, we have met before.” I introduced my cousin and soon we were all sitting comfortably.
“I must thank you for bringing my niece to Town so expeditiously, Mr. Darcy,” said Mrs. Monroe.
“It was no trouble,” I replied. I wanted to ask Miss Bennet if all was well, but it was not seemly to mention it in front of others. “I was glad to be of assistance.”
“How is your cousin?” asked Miss Elizabeth.
“Miraculously better,” I said.
“That is wonderful news!” cried Mrs. Monroe. “I am friends with your mother, Lord Hartley, and I prayed quite vigorously for your brother.”
Alistair cleared his throat. “It is greatly appreciated. It was quite serious for a time there.”
Miss Bennet kept her eyes on her lap and only looked up briefly to say, “We are glad to hear of his recovery.”
The rest of the call was typical of such meetings. The weather was canvassed, we discussed our plans for the festive season, and Lord Hartley invited Miss Bennet and her aunt to dinner with his family in three days’ time, which quite surprised me.
When we left and walked back across the street, I asked him, “Why did you invite them to dinner? You have only just met.”
He looked at me as if I were stupid. “Really, Darcy? You are going to play dumb?”
“What do you mean, play dumb? I never play dumb!”
“As you shouldn’t. It is unbecoming.”
We walked into Darcy House and made our way to my study. Once the door was shut behind us, he said, “I invited her because I wish to get to know Miss Bennet better as it is obvious you are falling in love with her.”
I stared at him for a full minute without blinking. “I am not!”
“Yes, you are.”
I huffed. I would not be pulled into a childish game. “I do not know where you got such a notion.”
He rolled his eyes and sank into a chair by the fire. “If you must know, I got the notion from the way you gave her a ride to Town even though you were in a terrible rush, and the way you stared at her throughout our entire call, and the way you hung on every word she said, no matter how dull.”
“She is not dull!”
“And the way you defend her even when she has not been insulted.” He held his hands out triumphantly. “I have not said anything about how many times you mentioned her in your letters from Hertfordshire.”
I looked at him in bewilderment, opened my mouth to say something, closed it, and paced around my study. Finally, I sank into the chair across from my cousin.
“What did you think of her?”
“I thought very little. She did not say much as her aunt was carrying the conversation, though that is not so unexpected. If you say she has a wonderful personality, I will believe you. She is certainly pretty. I can see why she caught your eye.”
She caught more than my eye.
“Now are you going to tell me what has you so tied up in knots about the girl?”
I sighed. “She is not suitable. She comes from an insignificant family in Hertfordshire. I believe she has a dowry of two or three thousand pounds. It may be less. Her only connection of note is her aunt.”
“It is a good connection to have. Mrs. Monroe is the sister to Lady Talbot. And she is a wealthy woman in her own right. Are you waiting for a title?”
“No, I do not require a title. But your father would be very disappointed.”
“My father is often disappointed. You will both learn to live with it.”
“You would not be bothered by the connection?”
