“At least consider it, sweetheart,” her mother pleaded as she gave her daughter a lost and perplexed look at her steadfast disinterest. “Love is a grand thing, and finding a good, well-to-do man to fall in love with can make it so much nicer. Parties. Theaters. Overseas trips! Just imagine; you can be somebody’s Kim to their Kane.”
“I believe its pronounced Con-yay, Mom.”
“Is it really?”
Father gave a thin smile as he was caught trying to slip around a corner.
“Dear, please come talk some sense into your daughter!”
Turning to face the two women with all the excitement of someone facing an audit, Mr. Bennet replied, “Well now, if we are all being honest here, I will continue to be of a mind that the girls will always be too young to date.”
“Oh you're no help!” Mrs. Bennet lamented with a theatrical sigh, crossing her arms irritably.
“Not in these matters, I'm afraid.” Father chuckled as he gave the top of his daughter’s head an affectionate kiss.
“Although having said that, a good impression might be beneficial to you, my girl,” Father pointed out. “Charles Bingley is a senior partner in the Darcy Law Firm. You might be able to get a different sort of recommendation from him.”
Elizabeth paused mid-protest as the words sank in. Did he say Darcy? As in the Darcy and Associates Law Firm? Top law firm in the city? The way mother spoke of Charles and the parties and fundraisers, she had assumed he was some business mogul, not an attorney! A small spark of excitement jolted her senses. Had she known that, she would have taken more time to make it out of her room to meet him! She always loved talking to established attorneys. She felt like she became a little stronger and much wiser by listening to their advice and experiences. So this was Jane’s boyfriend! She couldn’t help but wonder how much different her search might be if she could use his name as a reference...
She felt a pang of guilt and immediately reined in her excitement. Dinner was about meeting Jane's new boyfriend, not hogging his attention to glean his mind for advice. Besides, she certainly could not give into the sudden temptation to ask for his help. She had just been growling over people using their connections to gain their internships a scant few minutes ago. What would it say about her if she turned and did the same at the first available opportunity?
Father, the observant and insightful man that he was, seemed to read her mind in that magical way he always could since she was little. “Of course, there is no need to expect anything tonight, but you never know when an opportunity might spring up down the road. Part of the job is keeping your options open.”
She bit her bottom lip in inner debate. While she was loath to rely on anyone or anything other than her own skills, she could see the merit of keeping an open mind regarding her options, and perhaps her mother was right; she could hardly be seen as a serious young attorney if she did not dress and act the part in front of guests. She gave her parents a brief nod of agreement, which seemed to appease her mother, at least for the moment. Dressing nicely for dinner was no substitute for mom's quest to have her daughters married off to the elite crust of society, but for now, the jeans were exiled from the dinner table.
Chapter Fourteen
Charles never knew what to expect at the Bennet household. It seemed a little different each time he was invited to dinner, which was fairly often as of late. Most were relatively normal, with the family gathering to eat and share their news of the day. There were a few exceptions of course. One day, Mrs. Bennet had invited him over for Mexican and she’d decked the whole dining room in red, with Spanish music playing in the background. For the occasion, the hostess even wore a traditional Mexican dress someone had given her as a souvenir. He wouldn't trade it for the world. He found the Bennets to be wonderful company. Even Kitty and Lydia’s gossiping about the latest goings on among singers and movie stars or bickering about the same was entertaining to Charles.
Tonight, he had the pleasure of meeting another of Jane's sisters. Elizabeth, or Lizzy as her family called her. She hadn’t been home any of the other times he’d been there, so he had not had the opportunity prior to this night. He found that he liked her immensely, her wit and knowledge refreshing. Many students memorized what was required of them, but this girl had put in extra effort to understand everything as well. He had no doubt that his business partner would have been intrigued had he been here to witness their lively debate and discussions.
"I have to apologize again for last week, Charles," Mrs. Bennet said as she waved her napkin with a dramatic flourish. "I really was not feeling like myself."
"Not at all, ma'am." Charles gave the woman a reassuring smile. "We all have those sort of days."
"Some more than others, unfortunately." Mrs. Bennet sighed as she placed her napkin back into her lap. “I could have played Veronica Chamberlain this week with little effort and been quite convincing,” she added, referring to her favorite afternoon soap character.
Charles studied the woman with interest. Last week Kitty had hinted that their mother was perhaps a hypochondriac.
"But today my nerves are better… for the time being," she continued, sounding cheerful. She beamed as she gazed over at Elizabeth. "And just in time to welcome our dear Lizzy back to the family dinners. She's auditioning for her internship, you know."
"Applying Mom," Elizabeth said quickly. "I'm applying for an internship."
"She's applying to audition for her internship." Mrs. Bennet smiled as she corrected herself. Jane coughed into her hand to hide her amusement.
"Mom, you don't audition. I would go in for an interview."
"What's the difference?" Mrs. Bennet asked, raising her brows ever so slightly.
"Nothing, I suppose," Elizabeth said in resignation, sensing that further argument would get her nowhere. She turned and gave Charles an apologetic smile. "I am applying for an internship."
"That's wonderful. I'm sure you have them lining up," Charles said cheerfully.
He felt Jane squeeze his leg in warning a second too late. He watched the young lady's smile falter, and Elizabeth quickly became interested in the coleslaw on her plate.
"Alas! The ever-present glass ceiling!" Mrs. Bennet said with a flourish, tapping her napkin over the corners of her mouth.
"I'm sure there was no ceiling to be had," Mr. Bennet said gruffly. "It's hardly the 60's."
"Which is the problem!" Mrs. Bennet’s voice rose a notch in indignation. "Here in modern times, you would think a woman could make her way on effort alone!"
"Women can and do, dear." Mr. Bennet stated, putting his napkin next to his plate as he rose. "I apologize for making this short, but I have a presentation I need to finish. As the only paid staff member of our museum’s local historical society for the last thirty years, I have the sole responsibility for the acquisition, care of and subsequent exhibitions of all artifacts. There’s always work to be done. It was good to see you, Charles."
Charles exchanged pleasantries with the man before Mr. Bennet made his way to his study. It had not escaped Charles' notice that Mr. Bennet often had pressing work to do when his wife became ... excitable. Not that he could judge. It was easy to have an opinion when you did not have to live in the person's shoes.
"Perhaps you could put in a good word for her, Charles?" Mrs. Bennet asked beseechingly, causing the young woman in question to stutter an immediate protest. It did not seem to faze her mother in the least. "I'm sure your endorsement would make a world of difference."
"Mother, please!" Elizabeth pleaded sharply, gazing over at Charles.
Mrs. Bennet rolled her eyes. “Oh, Lizzy, that’s what friends are for! Anyway, now that the cat is out of the wallet, what do you say, Charles?”
Kitty and Lydia burst out laughing. Kitty said between breaths, “The cat out of the wallet!”
Mrs. Bennet looked at her two youngest daughters in confusion.
Jane took a sip of water then said gently, “I believe you mean now that the cat
’s out of the bag, Mom, not wallet.”
“Are you sure? Well, I think it can go either way. In any case, it would be a great help if you could get Lizzy an audition, Charles.”
Kitty and Lydia howled with laughter now.
“Girls, please! Must you carry on so?” their mother chastised.
“Perhaps you two can go into the living room?” Jane suggested.
The girls continued to laugh with tears streaming down their faces as they made their way out of the dining room.
Wishing she had stayed in her room, Elizabeth looked at Charles. "I apologize. I won't hold you to that, of course. I'm more than qualified to find an internship eventually."
"I've no doubt about that,” Charles replied overly enthusiastically, finally able to at least smile, though still suppressing the urge to laugh. "But seeing as it's been brought up, why don't you apply to our firm? Mr. Darcy and I were just talking about requiring an extra pair of hands around the office."
Elizabeth could almost feel her jaw drop to the floor. She had hoped that she could lay some groundwork and learn more about the industry but this was amazing. He’d made the offer so easily that she half expected him to burst out laughing. Surely, he was not seriously inviting her to apply.
"Oh, Charles! You are living proof that chivalry is not dead!" Mrs. Bennet gushed. "If only I were twenty years younger, I might have to steal you away! Isn't that wonderful, dear?"
Elizabeth felt her face burn as she tried to formulate a polite refusal. An internship at his company was the Holy Grail for law students at her university. Many tried and the successes were few and far between, but she did not want it offered to her out of charity, especially not from Jane's boyfriend!
"Please don't make too much of it, Mrs. Bennet," Charles gave the woman a charming smile. "After all, my offer is for purely selfish reasons."
"Is that so?" Mrs. Bennet rose her brows in question, leaning forward on the table.
"Yes. You see, if we did take on an intern, then there would be less work to take care of after hours. It would allow me more personal time with the lovely Jane. So you see it is in my best interest to see what I can do."
Jane laughed softly under her breath and leaned over to give the man a soft peck on the cheek. Elizabeth could almost imagine their hands clasped in a fond embrace beneath the table. She almost envied Jane having such a sweet relationship.
"How about it?" Charles asked as he turned his attention back to. Elizabeth "You would be doing me a big favor by applying."
"Me too, it sounds like!" Jane said, her eyes sparkling cheerfully as she gazed across the table at her sister. "You'll at least consider it won't you, Lizzy?"
Elizabeth was at a loss. She might have refused the offer out of pride, but if it were really as beneficial to Jane as it was to her then she could hardly argue that point. "I'd be honored to apply for an internship at your office, sir."
Charles grinned. "Wonderful! Now, I happen to have a perfect day in mind...and the best time. We’ll go in before the others arrive. Once everyone starts showing up, there are always consults scheduled with Darcy. We want his full, uninterrupted attention."
Chapter Fifteen
Will Darcy made his way into the office while straightening the cuffs of his jacket. He was usually the first to arrive, although Ruthie sometimes beat him there. Monday had come all too soon.
Usually, he would welcome a return to work. However, he had taken Georgiana out of town. She was only just beginning to show that familiar smile of hers again. The incident from six months ago had torn her apart. He still regretted the part he'd played, no matter how necessary it had been. Young love was certainly a dangerous and foolish thing. Especially when given to a devil like George Wickham.
He sighed and pushed the memory out of his mind. What mattered was that Georgiana had made it through the ordeal with only bruised emotions. It could have been far, far worse. She was finally smiling and laughing again and that was what was important. Her music had even regained its magical tone in recent weeks. Her instructor had been practically crying tears of joy during her last lesson.
He sometimes pondered if he should have let the man get away so easily. At the time, he was thinking of Georgiana, about how she would have to go before a jury and tell the story of their foolish plan to elope. The defending attorney would do his level best to destroy her reputation and her credibility. He knew all too well how these sort of cases went and he absolutely could not bring himself to subject her to that. With any luck, he would never need to hear the name of George Wickham again for as long as he lived. The man was a reckless, greedy, deceiving leech, but surely even he was not about to risk the Darcy wrath by slithering his way back into their lives.
He flipped his messages on to play as he took his papers from the briefcase and laid them on his desk. Like a hundred times prior, he reminded himself that he needed to look into a temp agency for a secretary to fill in for Ruthie while she was on maternity leave. Though they really needed one, he had a hard time trusting just anyone coming into his father's business, resulting in his continuing to put it off.
The first message was one from Charles. Ah yes, something about wanting to interview interns. He'd mentioned a likely candidate. Will did not care for interns for the most part. Unlike he and Charles had been, they seemed more interested in their phones than their futures. Sloppy. Lazy. Entitled. It was such an effort to sift through the scores of applicants for a passable one. However, Charles sounded insistent that the one he had in mind would be perfect. The man knew better than to throw such a claim at him without plausible proof so it should be interesting to see what he had in mind.
The next message was an invitation to another dinner. He skipped over it, making a note to tell Charles about it. Ever since he’d met a young lady at one of those parties, Charles often volunteered to represent the company at such functions, always escorting his new lady friend. He was not entirely sure what he thought of the man's motives, but it he really didn’t care as long as it didn't affect the business.
He smiled as he heard a familiar voice on the final message. How long had it been? Will was often too busy to pay much attention.
"Hey, Darcy! Oliver here. You actually sleeping in today, you lazy bum?" the voice boomed with jovial laughter over the tiny speaker. "Just wanted to check with you about an applicant we have here. He's got himself a pretty good resume. Almost too good. What caught my eye was that he said he worked for your firm. The funny thing is that I don't recall ever seeing him at your office. When you get a chance, give me a callback. The fella's name is…"
******
"Thank you again, Charles," Elizabeth said, feeling awkward as she shifted her portfolio from one arm to the other. "I really do appreciate your doing this. I hope it's not too much trouble."
"Not at all! As I said, you would be the one doing me a favor," Charles assured her as they made their way to the front doors. "With our secretary away, we’re managing, but life would be infinitely easier if we took on an intern this year."
"I've always wondered why your company took on so few trainees. I imagine you are the busiest firm in the city."
"Honestly, I couldn't tell you," Charles said with a kind smile. "Will Darcy is a good man. Very practical, razor sharp, so I never really understood it myself to be honest. It's just one of those things you think of, but never think to actually ask."
Elizabeth frowned at the explanations. It sounded a bit like Mr. Darcy felt like he was too good to take on interns in his office. Maybe he was the sort where only the best would do. If that was the case, an internship here might prove difficult. She had every confidence in her ability; it was her tongue she fretted over. Would she be able to keep quiet with a man that looked down his nose at her? No. Most likely not... no… definitely not!
Charles must be a mind reader. No sooner had she thought it he waved a hand at the front sign. "Don't you worry though; he's a fair and levelheaded man. Always knows what to do under pres
sure. Patient as the day is long. There is no better person to work for in the city."
******
"I should have you committed. Are you insane?" Will yelled into the phone, face red with rage as he choked the handset in his hand.
"Well hello to you too. Yes, 'm fine. Thanks for asking," George Wickham's voice sneered from the other end. "So to what do I owe the pleasure of a call from his holiness? Out to steal something else from me?"
"I warned you, did I not?" Darcy seethed as he paced the room.
"Hey! I haven't been anywhere near your half-wit sister!" George snapped back. "If she's been sneaking around, it’s with somebody else. So—"
"Don't push me, George. I still have the records."
"What court is that gonna hold up in? I never actually did anything to the girl, and I certainly never laid as much as a finger on her. Besides, you really think anyone is going to take it seriously when you took six months to get around to reporting it?"
"If you had paid any attention in class, you would know exactly when, where, and for how long they would take a pedophile seriously."
"P-ped... Now see here!"
"She was a minor, George. You do the math on how far this could go," Darcy raged.
The silence from George at the other end was so deafening for a moment that Darcy suspected he might have hung up. However, the man was still there and when he spoke again it was in a much more subdued voice. "So what do you want then?"
"I want you to disappear, George!" Will yelled. "Don't call. Don't write. Don't use my name or this company for a reference. Do not even breathe any association with us for the rest of your days. If I hear your name linked with my family in any way, shape, or form again, I will personally see to it that you spend some quality time in a jail cell. Give me just one reason, George."
Legally Darcy: A Modern Retelling of Pride and Prejudice Page 7
