by Wells, Linda
“Ah there you are Darcy!” Bingley smiled and joined them. “I lost you in this crush!”
“Yes, the supper rooms are hopelessly jammed.” Darcy plastered a look of annoyance on his face. “I am afraid that we have had nothing and I am certain there is not a morsel left. Leaving the dance floor early was a useless exercise. Forgive me Miss Elizabeth for the attempt to beat the crowd.”
“Now I understand why my aunt insisted that we eat before leaving.” Elizabeth pursed her lips to see his hauteur and caught the hint of a twinkle in his eye.
“Ah, that is where you two went: tongues were wagging when you disappeared.” Bingley did not notice the glance between the couple. Instead he pulled at his neck cloth. “Blasted warm in here as well!” He observed then started. “Oh, forgive my language Miss Elizabeth; I merely noticed that you must be feeling the heat.” Her eyes grew wide. “Put my foot in it again.” He sighed. “If my sister were here I would never hear the end of it.”
“Where is Miss Bingley? I am sorry that I did not think to ask when you and Mr. Darcy arrived to collect us.” Elizabeth said quickly and peeked up to see that Darcy was smiling appreciatively at her blushing face.
“She managed to acquire a cold.” Bingley laughed. “She was dressed and ready to come tonight, but after the tenth sneeze I refused to let her out of the house. I do not think that our hostess would have appreciated her presence.”
“I can assure you of that.” Darcy said dryly.
“So I am free to mingle!”
“And have you found anyone to your liking, sir?” Elizabeth smiled and he shook his head.
“Ah there is much to like, but I am afraid that I am still too new to be desired.” He sighed and looked around. “Perhaps next year.”
“Darcy, may I have a word?” Lord Matlock appeared and bowed to Elizabeth.
“Certainly.” He looked to her then to Bingley. “Could you …”
“Of course!” Bingley offered his arm and Elizabeth gratefully held on. He looked down and smiled. “How are you holding out tonight?”
“This is overwhelming.” She glanced around at all of the people and felt the eyes examining her closely. “Now I understand the term a fish out of water.”
“Well at least you are not gasping for air.” He chuckled and led her into one of the less crowded supper rooms. “Are you hungry?”
“No, I am far too nervous to eat.”
“A drink, perhaps?” Elizabeth smiled up to him and nodded. He asked for two glasses of wine and brought them over. “There, now we can both drown our nerves.”
“Are you as frightened of all of this as I am? You look so comfortable.”
“I was thinking the same of you. In fact, if I am not mistaken I would call you glowing.” He lifted his glass in a toast and smiled. “We are well-matched.”
“Mr. Bingley.” She said softly and he laughed louder.
“Did I do it again? Forgive me, Miss Elizabeth. I know my role is that of trusted friend.” He saw her blush, and took her glass and set it down. “Let us go and find your sister and aunt.”
She laughed and took his arm. “I am so ridiculous tonight. I do not know what is wrong with me!”
“I understand, Miss Elizabeth.” He patted her hand and they walked through the crowd. Elizabeth saw the eyes of guests trained on her and she clung to Bingley’s arm, trying to smile and meet the gazes bravely. “Ah, there they are.”
“Lizzy! Where did you go? Were you ill?” Mrs. Gardiner demanded and peered into her eyes. “You are very flushed!”
“Mr. Darcy thought that I needed to move to a cooler location, Aunt.”
“He should have spoken to me, I had no idea where you had gone, and the commentary that I heard was quite outrageous. I know that you are courting dear, but you must keep in mind your reputation, even in a crowded room. You are an interloper in this world.”
“Yes Aunt, I am very much aware of that fact.” Elizabeth sighed then noticed that she remained an object of curiosity. “Jane, how is your evening? I am sorry but I have been too busy with my partners to speak to you. I noticed that you have been dancing a great deal.”
Jane smiled. “Yes, it has been very pleasant. The gentlemen are so different from those of my experience at home.”
“Really? How so?”
“They are very curious of home and family. I suppose that in Hertfordshire everyone knows us, so those questions are not necessary.” Jane looked around the room then back to see Elizabeth’s astonishment. “What is it, Lizzy?”
“Jane, what have you been saying?”
“Nothing, I said that Longbourn is in Hertfordshire and that I am one of five sisters.” She looked from Elizabeth to Mrs. Gardiner. “It is not an untruth.”
“So everyone knows that we have no heir.” Elizabeth sighed.
“Yes, I suppose they do. I still do not understand the problem, Lizzy?”
“Jane, no heir, a small estate, and five daughters, have you forgotten that those were all very key reasons for Mr. Stewart’s rejection? We walked in here as unknown ladies, and now I am very much afraid that the whispers behind the fans are about the two fortune hunters who have entered their midst.”
Mrs. Gardiner nodded. “I was afraid of this, but it is inevitable.”
“But why did it have to happen tonight!” Elizabeth cried. She felt a presence beside her and looked up to see Stewart.
“Miss Elizabeth, may I speak to you?” He looked to Mrs. Gardiner who raised her brows to Elizabeth. She looked around for Darcy, and he was nowhere to be seen.
She sighed and nodded. “Yes, Mr. Stewart.”
They walked away and he spoke softly so the ever present eavesdroppers could not hear. “Miss Elizabeth, I have heard the talk in the house, I do not know how the rumour was spread, but the news of your …”
“Poverty, undesirability, mercenary scheming …”
“Please stop.” He said sincerely
“Forgive me, sir. My sister apparently has a loose tongue.” Elizabeth spoke with bitterness. “But no doubt they would know soon enough. Have you added the news of my family to the litany against us?”
“I know that I deserve that, but I want you to know that I regretted you the moment I walked away.”
Elizabeth met his eye and said without emotion. “I was told that you loved me.”
Stewart flushed with her direct statement. “I discovered this after I was gone. Darcy told you?”
“Yes.”
“I realize that you are courting him, and I understand that you have had a friendship for years …but it must not have been that strong for you to have accepted my attentions last autumn. I do not believe you capable of playing with two men’s hearts. You are not mercenary.”
“I thank you for that, sir.” Elizabeth shook her head and sighed. “I had no connection to Mr. Darcy when we met.”
“Then if I had not been such a prejudiced fool, we could have been married by now.”
She closed her eyes. “Sir, do not torture yourself.”
He reached out and touched her arm. “I cannot help it.”
Elizabeth’s newfound confidence born of her engagement drove her to speak plainly. “Mr. Stewart, if you came to know your feelings as far back as December, why did you never act upon them? Why was I left at Longbourn to feel the pain of rejection and the unending rebuke of my mother? If you cared so deeply, you should have returned. Was seeing me tonight in your world convincing enough to make me acceptable, especially away from my family?”
He was struck by the thought. “I … I … suppose that it was.”
“But sir, the only reason that I am here is because Mr. Darcy, who did know of my family and poverty through you, brought me here. If it were not for him, I would still be alone and rejected, and you would remain in your regret because you did not have the courage to come and bring me here yourself.” Stewart stared at her as the truth sank in. “Mr. Stewart, are you certain that you loved me?”
“I
was.” He looked down to his hands and shook his head. “I feel such confusion, I do not know myself.”
“Sir, I believe that if circumstances were different, we might have made a very comfortable and happy couple, but my heart was taken by a dream, and yours was not allowed to care more for someone you could only dream about. I think that you are a very good and kind man, but please do not wish for me any longer. Allow your guilt for rejecting me to go. I am happy, truly.”
Stewart smiled softly. “We met at the wrong time and the wrong place.”
“We will never know, will we?” She smiled. “I want you to be happy.”
“Thank you for this. But if you ever need me …”
“Miss Elizabeth.” They both started to see Darcy looking unhappily at Stewart. “Are you well?”
Elizabeth slipped her hand onto his arm and felt the tension in his muscle. “Yes Mr. Darcy, I am.”
He moved his eyes from hers and they rested on Stewart. The two men remained silent for several long moments until Darcy spoke very quietly. “The only man that Miss Elizabeth will ever need to rely upon is me, Stewart. Do I make myself clear?”
“Yes, Darcy. I want to assure you that Miss Elizabeth made that perfectly understood before you arrived. If you had heard our entire conversation you would have realized that she has managed to chastise me for my behaviour most effectively, but in the kindest way possible. I hope that we three may remain friends.”
Elizabeth squeezed Darcy’s arm, and he looked down to her. “You have nothing to fear, believe me.”
He studied her for several moments, and feeling the reassurance of her touch, turned back to Stewart. “I would hate to lose your friendship.” Stewart nodded and they both looked to Elizabeth who had startled by the approach of a determined couple. Seeing that it was family, Stewart moved away.
“Darcy, I say man, when were you going to introduce us to your friend? We have been waiting all night!” Singleton appeared with his wife Audrey on his arm. Darcy stiffened and Elizabeth took the cue to be on her guard.
“The opportunity simply has not arisen. Miss Elizabeth Bennet, this is my cousin Audrey Singleton and her husband Mr. Jeffery Singleton. Audrey is Colonel Fitzwilliam’s sister.”
“It is a pleasure.” Elizabeth smiled and curtseyed.
“Well then, it is indeed.” Singleton looked her over then offered his arm. “Come, let us dance.”
“Oh, I …”
“No, the best way to know you is by dancing, I insist.” Elizabeth looked to Darcy and he nodded, but clearly did not like the arrangement. Tension radiated from him. Audrey watched them leave and raised her brows.
“No offer to dance with your cousin?”
“Do you mind if I do not, Audrey?”
“I suppose that you can observe better from the side.” She laughed and he looked at her quickly then away to watch Elizabeth. “The room is swirling with rumours, Darcy.”
“I have been informed of them by your father.”
“Mama is furious.”
“Over what aspect?”
“That you could be taken in by a fortune hunter.” Audrey saw his eyes grow dark with anger. “By your expression I suppose that the rumours that she is your mistress are also false?”
Darcy spun to stare and she was instantly taken aback by the fury and hurt that was expressed in his look. “Who dares to say such things?”
“I am sorry, clearly it is incorrect, but it is the only logical explanation for you accepting one so different. Mama has introduced you to countless women this Season and you have had no interest in any. To walk in here with someone of her status is an insult to all of the ladies you rejected, and their justification is that if you were not ready for marriage, you chose a mistress instead.”
“Miss Elizabeth is NOT my mistress. What man brings a mistress in the company of her sister and chaperoning aunt? If these women are disappointed in my disinterest perhaps they should ask what I found wanting in them!” He fought back the need to announce their engagement. “I am courting her. Your father and brother are aware of this. I am sure that by now your mother is as well.”
“I have heard nothing of it.” Audrey saw him return his gaze to Elizabeth, and his feelings were transparent. “My goodness Darcy, you are in love with her!” He looked down to his cousin and nodded shortly and swallowed hard, then returned to watch Elizabeth dance. Audrey observed his unwavering attention, and could not ever recall her husband looking at her in such a way. “Oh cousin, you are lost. How does Miss Elizabeth feel about you? Do you know?”
“I do.” He said softly. “We are in harmony.”
“I am so very happy for you.” Audrey touched his arm and he turned to her, and she saw the gratitude for her support. She nodded her head. “I will speak to Mama, and perhaps if Alicia is willing, she and I can help Miss Elizabeth.”
“How?”
“We can teach her what she needs to know in our society, I am sure that she is adrift here tonight.”
“I would be forever grateful Audrey, thank you.” Darcy paused, and biting his lip asked softly, “Why would you wish to help her?”
She smiled and shrugged. “I was not permitted a love match, but I would rejoice to see yours.”
He grew concerned. “Are you unhappy?”
“No, I am fond of my husband, despite his penchant for gossip.” She watched him dancing and clearly interviewing Elizabeth. “It was an arranged marriage Darcy; you know that, just as my brother’s was. Richard will likely find the same someday. It would be so good to see one of us marry for love.”
“Who is she, Stewart?” Lord Moreland asked his silent son. “You have been staring at her all evening. I hear rumours that are frankly disturbing. Has Darcy really taken a mistress?”
“What?” Stewart rounded on his father. “Who dares suggest that Miss Elizabeth is anything but a proper young woman?”
“You are being unusually defensive of this girl.” His father said sharply.
“I know her well.” Stewart turned back to see her dancing with Singleton. “I met her in Hertfordshire; her father’s estate is adjacent to Netherfield.”
“You know her?”
“She is a witty, kind, and intelligent woman. Darcy is courting her, and I know that he will marry her.” Stewart looked to see Darcy reacting to his cousin’s words. “I think that he has just been informed of the same rumours you bring me.” Stewart turned back to his father. “When did it become a crime to be a gentlewoman from a small estate? Why is being one of five daughters mark you as undesirable?”
“Son, what are you about? Did you … my God, this is the woman you have been mooning over all these months!”
Stewart looked away and back to her. “She is a lovely girl, but I feared pursuing her.”
“Why?”
He laughed shortly. “Why? Look at the reaction of this place to her! Granted that is jealousy by a roomful of the wealthy with nothing better to do but gossip about a supremely eligible man, but what would you have said? You would have told me the truth; I could not afford to have her.”
“I am sorry, Son.” Lord Moreland stared at his son’s angry visage. “You turned away from this woman because …”
“I am a second son, someday I will have an admirable income and it might be possible, but right now when she is free …” He looked up to see his father’s reaction and let down his defences. “It is my fault Father. I had my opportunity, and Darcy has snapped up the treasure. And I’ll be damned if I will see either of them suffer for the amusement of these people!”
Lady Moreland approached and touched his arm then looked to her husband. “What is wrong?”
“I hope that if you do not listen to me, then you will speak to Lord Matlock. He knows the truth.” Stewart watched as Singleton returned Elizabeth to Darcy’s side. Immediately he took her hand and kissed it, and placed it on his arm, then covered her hand with his free one. The gesture was clear enough, but then Darcy gazed directly into her eyes
. The smile; and her happy smile in return expanded the story. All around him tongues began wagging, new speculation about the relationship blossomed. Behind him he heard two women burst into conversation.
“Besotted!”
“Could it be true, Mr. Darcy is in love with her?”
Stewart saw his opportunity and turned, and leaning down, spoke in a conspiratorial whisper, “Ladies, I know without a doubt that Mr. Darcy is courting Miss Elizabeth Bennet, and his intentions are honourable.”
“Sir, are you certain?” One woman asked eagerly.
“Indeed, I am. She is restoring his good humour after his father’s sad death. Is it not a blessing?” The women nodded and put their heads together. Satisfied, he watched as they began moving around the crowd. Soon gasps, pointing, and whispered conversations began. Stewart moved to the couple and walking to Darcy’s side leaned to his ear and spoke quietly. Darcy glanced up quickly and nodded. “Come, Miss Elizabeth.” He bowed to his cousins and they began moving through the crowd.
“Where are we going?” She asked worriedly.
Darcy squeezed her hand and gave her a small smile. “We are striking while the iron is hot.”
“You are speaking in riddles! Please tell me what is happening?” They approached his goal, Lord and Lady Matlock were standing together, and Fitzwilliam was nearby. Both men were speaking to her and she was listening with a doubtful expression on her face.
Darcy whispered to her. “Dearest, if ever there was a moment to be charming, it has arrived.”
“What are you asking me to do?” Elizabeth came to a stop and demanded.
“I am asking you to be yourself, follow my lead, and trust me.” He spoke softly. “Please.”
She nodded and the couple approached his family. Fitzwilliam nudged his father and Lord and Lady Matlock stopped speaking to see what they had to say. “Uncle, Aunt, I have heard some outrageous rumours spreading throughout your home tonight regarding my friendship with Miss Elizabeth. I wish to correct them immediately.”
“Yes?”
“I have to speak to Miss Elizabeth’s uncle, but I wish you to know that tonight I proposed marriage to Miss Elizabeth, and she has accepted me.” He turned and gave her a beaming smile. “She has made me the happiest of men.”
