“Your sisters! Charles, you never told me they were related to Jane. I wondered who they were. I think they’re mistaking this for a frat party.”
“They’re just having fun, Caroline. Please allow me to introduce you to Jane’s other sister, Miss Elizabeth Bennet. This is my youngest sister, Caroline Bingley.”
Elizabeth smiled warmly, holding out her hand. “It’s a pleasure to meet you.”
Caroline’s return smile was sickly sweet. “At least you’ve managed to keep your clothes on, Elizabeth.”
“Quite, and please, forgive my sisters, but the invitation did say it was a pool party so they naturally assumed—”
“Don’t think anything of it,” Charles interrupted. “It’s nice that they’ve got the younger guests enjoying themselves instead of being bored out of their minds with all the stuffy networking going on. Georgiana, wouldn’t you like to go and change and join them?”
The young lady who was standing close to Darcy shook her head. “No thanks, Charles. Maybe later?” The eyes she turned to Charles were pleading, as if begging him to drop it. Elizabeth thought she seemed shy, a little unsure of herself despite being very beautiful.
“Whatever you want, Georgie. You and I will maybe have a dip later eh?” Charles said before turning back to Elizabeth. “Please allow me to introduce my other sister and her husband, Mr. & Mrs. Hurst.”
Elizabeth shook hands with the couple, the plump woman looking decidedly uninterested while the man clutched a whisky tumbler in his hand. Elizabeth felt it was a bit early in the day for the hard stuff, but decided once again that it was none of her business. That brought them to the tall, handsome man that she’d dreaded seeing and even Charles seemed wary of making the introduction.
“And of course, you must recognize Mr. Darcy, although you haven’t had the opportunity to be properly introduced due to the unfortunate circumstances of the timing...”
Charles trailed off, unsure of what to say. Darcy stepped forward and held out his hand. “Miss Bennet. I’m so glad you’re here today and that we finally get to meet. It allows me the perfect opportunity to extend my sincerest apologies for our previous encounters. I’m afraid my conduct during both was appalling.”
Caroline let out a laugh and touched him on the shoulder. “You must be exaggerating, Darcy. I’ve never seen you act appallingly so if you did, then I’m sure whoever was the recipient deserved it.”
Darcy ignored her interruption, as did Elizabeth, although she fumed inside. He kept his eyes on Elizabeth. “Rest assured it was in no way directed at you, but rather a matter of circumstances beyond my control as Charles has said. Please don’t take them as any reflection of my actual character, nor as a personal slight. Charles assures me that my actions were of a great loss to both the company and myself personally and I’m certain that he’s correct.”
Elizabeth had taken the extended hand, seeing nothing else to do in the situation. He was still holding it at the end of his speech. If it wasn’t for what George had told her, she might have actually believed it because he did appear genuinely sorry and most definitely sounded sincere. However, she knew better than to be taken in and couldn’t believe the nerve of him, pretending to be all charming and contrite. She pulled her hand away.
“Don’t concern yourself, Mr. Darcy. It’s in the past and should remain there. Besides, things worked out for the best. As you know, I secured another position, and must say I’m enjoying it immensely.” She couldn’t resist a dig. “It’s nice to work in a place with such friendly, pleasant, and honest colleagues.”
She saw Darcy’s jaw tense and knew she’d struck a nerve. Good!
When she turned to the young lady for the expected introduction, she saw the clear, soft, brown eyes studying her with interest. She didn’t look much older than eighteen or so, but Elizabeth fancied she saw a deep pain and wisdom in there well beyond her years. She didn’t wait for Charles to speak.
“Hello, I’m Elizabeth Bennet, very nice to meet you.”
The return handshake was gentle. “Nice to meet you too. I’m Georgiana Darcy.”
Elizabeth was careful not to let the expression on her face change or any words come unbidden from her lips. She shouldn’t even know that Darcy had a sister, never mind anything else about their family history.
“I’m afraid I seem to be missing some information here, but it sounds like my brother offended you in some way at some time. I’ll apologize also on his behalf.”
“Really not necessary,” Elizabeth replied, genuinely meaning it. The girl seemed very sweet, the total opposite of her arrogant sibling.
“Lizzy, so glad you could make it!”
Lizzy turned and grinned at her sister, opening her arms for a hug. “Wouldn’t miss it for the world. Good to see you.”
“Have you met everyone?”
Lizzy glanced at them all with a smile but didn’t look in Darcy’s direction, ensuring he knew her words weren’t extended to him. She didn’t feel much inclined to extend the sentiment to any of them except Charles and perhaps Georgiana, but wanted to keep the peace for Jane’s sake. “Yes, I’ve had the pleasure of being introduced to everyone.”
“Great. I’ve seen Mom; where’s everyone else?”
The last thing Lizzy wanted to do was draw attention to the rest of their family. “Oh, they’re around somewhere. Do you want to come and look for them with me?”
They were strolling away when she heard the comments made my Caroline Bingley.
“The rest of them? They’re not going to do your career any good. You need a socialite, or even new money. They at least can afford to get away with being brash and uncouth. I know quite a few daughters of Fortune 500 company owners. You should let me introduce you.”
“I’m perfectly capable of organizing my own love life, thank you.”
“I’m not so sure about that. What do you think, Louisa? Was that actually a department store bought dress she was wearing?”
Lizzy’s cheeks were aflame as she walked away, not with embarrassment but with fury. Thank the Lord that Jane had been too busy stopping to chat to other guests along the way to hear. Lizzy was certain now that she would be doing her best to gather everyone together and usher them away from here as soon as possible, before she said something she might really regret.
Chapter Twenty-Two
“Alright girls, we’re going to start the auction at seven sharp, so make sure you gather around to the right of the stage. And remember, don’t be shy, it’s all for a good cause. I meant all the single ladies eighteen and older.”
Lizzy shot a half-hearted glare at her sister, who was standing in front of the microphone on stage. With all eyes on her and the prod in the back from her mother, she didn’t have much option but to step forward with the other women who’d answered Jane’s request to join in the auction. Her cheeks burned; how mortifying to be bid on for a dance in front of such a large crowd! She wanted to throttle Jane when she got her hands on her in private.
For now, she had to play along and allow it since it was the first such event Jane had been officially assigned to take the lead in. Jane had begged her entire family to attend, arguing that she needed their support and it was for a good cause.
She had, however, failed to mention this little humiliating detail.
Mary, who had been standing next to her, folded her arms and turned away. Elizabeth’s heart ached for her. She knew she’d be thinking that probably no one would bid for her anyway. Mary had long since decided that she was the least pretty of the five sisters and that she didn’t care about anything as shallow as appearance anyway. She seemed to go out of her way not to pay any attention to how she looked and would refuse to put any effort in, saying if she was ever to be loved, it would be for what was on the inside. Elizabeth didn’t entirely disagree with her point of view, but perhaps being less prickly would actually give people a chance to find out what was on the inside.
Elizabeth couldn’t help but notice when Darcy ar
rived at the function with the Bingleys and another man she’d never met before; another thing she wanted to throttle Jane for. Her eldest sister had assured her she hadn’t seen Darcy at one of these events for months and months, yet here he was with Caroline Bingley hanging onto his arm and his every word. Elizabeth thought they made a fine pair. Both of them were fake, hiding their real selves from public view. Darcy saw her, and their party began heading directly over to where she was standing.
“Lizzy! So good to see you!” Charles approached with a wide smile. “I must say, you look lovely tonight. And Jane, is she around?”
“Hello, Charles. Yes, my sister is busy organizing the auction. You’ll find her somewhere near the stage.”
It didn’t take anything more to persuade Charles. He excused himself and was off in search of Jane.
Elizabeth turned to greet the others. “How good of you to make it tonight, Mr. Darcy, Miss Bingley.”
“Miss Bennet,” Caroline smiled a smile that Kitty liked to call one where her eyes weren’t smiling. Elizabeth wasn’t sure if it was because the smile wasn’t genuine or due to Botox. She guessed it was a combination of the two.
“Please call me Will,” Darcy replied. “We wouldn’t have missed supporting such a worthy cause. Please allow me to introduce to you my cousin, Richard Fitzwilliam. Richard, Miss Elizabeth Bennet.”
“How do you do, Miss Bennet?”
“Elizabeth. Nice to meet you. Are you an attorney as well?”
Richard laughed, “No, never! I leave that to the overachievers, like my cousin here. And I understand you will soon be giving him a run for his money.”
Elizabeth was perplexed that he should have any idea who she was, much less her chosen profession. She chalked it up to Charles having explained to him a little about Jane’s family.
“That is the plan,” she smiled. “Of course, Mr. Darcy does not view me as a formidable opponent, but my nerve and determination to succeed always rises when my abilities are doubted.”
Before Richard could make a reply, Darcy said, “It is true that I am not afraid of you. However, that doesn’t mean I don’t look forward to the challenge, which I’m sure you will provide.”
Richard laughed at the exchange. “Oh please, I beg you; make sure you tell me when you two are against each other in court. I’m sure it will be very entertaining. It has always given me pleasure to see Will bested!”
Caroline made a sound indicating she viewed his words as absurd. “Oh please! Get the better of William Darcy! That will be the day. No offence, Elizabeth, but Will is the very best at everything he does. I wouldn’t get my hopes up if I were you.”
“Ah, so I take it you have never lost a case then, Mr. Darcy?” Elizabeth asked with interest. She knew that would be highly improbable.
“Very few. I make it a practice to only take on clients whose cases can be won. I do not have the desire to represent those who I suspect deserve to lose.”
Elizabeth’s face could not conceal her surprise at his words. “And are you very careful in deciding who deserves to lose?
“I am.”
“I cannot help but feel sorry for the poor innocent victim who you refuse to help because you have set yourself up as his judge and jury. Once I become an attorney, please refer them to me.”
“It’s time! Ladies, please come up front,” Jane said enthusiastically into the microphone, interrupting Darcy and Elizabeth’s dispute.
Elizabeth gave the men a nod and took her place in the line avoiding any eye contact. Mr. Darcy’s arrogance had gotten her dander up. She only hoped that Mr. Collins wasn’t here. That would really be the icing on the cake!
Caroline gave Darcy a seductive look and his arm a playful squeeze before sliding into line next to Elizabeth.
“Well, well, cousin,” Richard said to Darcy once they were alone. “I can see why she caught your eye. She’s very different from the other women who are always throwing themselves at your feet.”
Darcy grinned. He found her enchanting. “Yes, there is something about her…”
There were a few young women who had been the first to dash forward, already giving encouraging waves and shooting anything but coy looks to the men they wanted to bid for them. Elizabeth stood at the other end of the line, not wishing to appear quite that eager.
Caroline Bingley walked up and took her place in line behind Elizabeth.
“Well, this is a bit degrading isn’t it,” Caroline murmured in a low voice.
“It’s all for charity so I suppose it’s worth it,” Elizabeth replied, studying her. Caroline might be saying one thing but she seemed to be enjoying the attention, secretly delighted to be called upon.
Once Jane was certain she’d picked out all the eligible females, she called for quiet so she could start the bidding. As the crowd quietened down, one voice could be heard loudly in the room.
“I hope all you gentleman are paying special attention to my lovely daughters! I know the one up on stage is the most beautiful but she’s already taken I’m afraid. However, the other one is very much available for your pleasure. Oops, that didn’t come out quite right,” Mrs. Bennet said with a hiccup and a giggle. She continued as Kitty and Lydia laughed hysterically. “I meant for your dancing pleasure of course.”
“Good grief, is your mother drunk?” Caroline asked with a horrified expression on her face.
On stage, Jane flushed bright red and stumbled over her explanation of the rules. Elizabeth wanted to curl up into a ball until this was over, but she lifted her chin and replied in a firm tone. “No, she’s only drunk a few tiny sips of champagne.”
“Does it not mix well with her medication?”
“Her medication?”
“Oh, I just assumed she must have a chronic condition of some sort,” Caroline smiled as she touched a finger to her forehead. “And that your sisters are afflicted with whatever illness their mother has. It would certainly explain a lot.”
“My mother can be enthusiastic and perhaps even a bit eccentric at times,” Elizabeth replied with an even tone. “However, she’s certainly not alone in possessing those qualities, as any good student of history is aware. My youngest sisters are just high-spirited. Weren’t you the same when you were that age?”
“I certainly hope not. Oh, I see Caruthers is bidding on Maria. There’s a surprise. I think she’s the reason for his recent divorce. The rumors have been flying about those two for ages.”
Elizabeth had no interest in the woman’s gossip and refused to lower herself to that level. She decided it was best to refrain from commenting. She was finding it hard to control her temper with the rude socialite.
Forcing her mind in another direction of thought, she glanced around the room. She recognized many of the faces but not all of them. She wasn’t entirely sure which men were single and which weren’t. She wondered almost as much as Mary might if anyone would bid on her, and if they did, who it might be. She’d hoped that George Wickham would attend – she’d mentioned that she was coming with her family – but there’d been no sign of him so far. Pity. That might have made this whole exercise more pleasurable. She was pulled from her inner musings about George by the sudden realization that Darcy was staring intently at her. She’d inadvertently caught his eye as she casually scanned the room. She looked away quickly, hoping that he didn’t think her look was a request for his bid. Perish the thought. She’d sooner just donate the bid amount herself. Before she knew it, it was her turn.
Two men began the bidding at fairly modest amounts, seeming to having a small battle going on between them. Elizabeth was pleased. The amount wasn’t massive but it would all help to boost the final total of the night.
“Better make your move, cousin. You want her to know you’re interested, don’t you?”
Suddenly, another voice joined the auction.
“Three thousand dollars.”
Elizabeth stared open-mouthed at Darcy, well aware that he’d been the one to offer the sum. She coul
dn’t fail to recognize the voice. The two other men grumbled, but added to the sum, increasing their bids against one another by ten-dollar increments. This time, Darcy took a step forward before he spoke again.
“Five thousand dollars.”
“Darcy! What are you trying to do to us?” one of the men yelled with a laugh. “I’m out, I can’t top that.”
The second man made a feeble attempt to continue but Darcy shut him down with an immediate response of ten thousand dollars, shocking the crowd, but delighting Jane. “Thank you so much, Mr. Darcy. That sum will definitely boost the takings for the night and your generosity will be much appreciated by the charity.”
Darcy simply nodded and walked towards Elizabeth, offering his arm while a white-faced and furious Caroline Bingley looked on. Elizabeth hesitated. She didn’t want to accept but knew she’d never be able to fulfil his pledge out of her own money. She couldn’t let Jane and the charity lose out on a sum like that so, reluctantly, she took his arm and strolled off to the side with him, watching in silence as the bidding began for Caroline. She achieved a high amount, although nowhere near Darcy’s extravagant bid. She didn’t look at all mollified by the result and snapped at the man who came to claim her.
“Thank you very much everyone,” Jane said. “We’ll reveal the totals at the end of the night. For the moment, if you’d all clear the dance floor, the band will take to the stage again and our fortunate winners can claim their prize of a waltz with their chosen partners.”
Everyone applauded then cleared the way. Darcy led Elizabeth onto the floor. She stood in awkward silence until the band readied themselves and began the waltz.
“There was no need to be that generous,” she said as he pulled her in perhaps a little closer than strictly necessary. “But I’m certain my sister will appreciate it.”
“I didn’t do it for her or the charity before you ask. My firm has already made a substantial contribution, as well as purchasing the table.”
Legally Darcy: A Modern Retelling of Pride and Prejudice Page 11
