His Uncle's Favorite (8 page)

And the earl said he would be pleased for his sons to marry either lady. Was he serious? Surely, that would never happen. But what if it did?

What of Elizabeth’s feelings towards him? He had been certain that she had an inclination towards him. He had even been careful not to encourage this tendency as he could not possibly consider binding himself to her.

And now the earl declared that she deeply disliked him and suggested he would agree for his son to court her. That could not be! Robert, as a second son, could not afford to marry a woman with no dowry; besides, Elizabeth could not possibly form a positive opinion of the colonel in so short a time! Or could she? After all, she apparently liked Wickham from their first acquaintance. Why could she not like Robert, who was an honourable gentleman with a happy demeanour and the son of an earl?

***

Elizabeth continued to talk to the colonel, but from time to time, her eyes returned to Mr. Darcy. He remained in the corner, and she began to feel uncomfortable whenever she felt his stare. What was he thinking? And why did he keep looking at her in such a way? Something obviously upset him, and she did not much care what it was except that his behaviour made her uneasy.

She went to pour herself another cup of tea, and she noticed the earl close to her. They smiled at one another, and he thanked her once again for her lovely performance.

“I hope you are having a pleasant evening, Miss Elizabeth.”

“Indeed we are, your lordship. We are truly grateful for your invitation. This party was a pleasant diversion for my aunt and my sister…and for me, of course.”

“I hope we shall meet again soon. I hope you have not been disappointed with my sons.”

“Not at all, sir. I enjoy their company, and I especially appreciate a gentleman who secures a dance for a ball a week early.” She smiled, and the earl laughed.

“Well, a man never should be timid about securing a beautiful lady’s company and a place on her dance card.”

She looked at the earl with surprise and curiosity, not daring to inquire further.

“Are you unwell, Miss Elizabeth? Did I say something wrong?”

“No, no…it is just that…a friend of mine told me the same thing some time ago, just before the ball at Netherfield. He asked me for a dance a week before the ball and—”

“Truly? That is quite unusual. I used to tell my boys that when they were younger, but I doubt my words of wisdom are as well known among strangers. “

Elizabeth forced a smile. “Well, they might be, after all. Or perhaps he heard you speak of it. Mr. Wickham told me he grew up at Mr. Darcy’s estate and—”

“Wickham? George Wickham, you mean? Do you know him?”

“Yes indeed. We met in Hertfordshire. He was in the militia and—” She looked at the earl carefully, trying to guess his opinion of that gentleman. With no little surprise, she felt the earl move her a few steps away as he spoke in a quiet voice.

“If he asked you to secure him a dance, I imagine you were on friendly terms.”

“Yes we were; in truth, I can say we were very good friends.”

“I am glad to hear that. I hope he is doing well, but let us speak about this on another occasion. That little rascal George Wickham was always a favourite of mine, but these boys seem not to like him much, so we had better not mention his name here for the moment.”

She wondered whether she should take him seriously, but a moment later when the colonel approached them and the earl suddenly changed the subject, she had her answer.

The rest of the evening passed in pleasant conversation on a variety of subjects. The only one who remained silently apart was Mr. Darcy, who seemed determined to watch from afar.

It was quite late when the guests finally took their leave.

The earl offered his arm to Mrs. Gardiner, and the colonel was ready to do the same for Elizabeth. It was an unexpected surprise, then, that Mr. Darcy stepped away from his sister and invited Elizabeth out, leaving the colonel to care for Miss Darcy.

Careful not to slip on the frozen path, Elizabeth held his arm tightly, her eyes lowered, reflecting that it was the first time—except for the requirement of dancing—that he had offered her his arm since they met.

“Miss Elizabeth, I am pleased I had the chance to see all of you tonight—such a pleasant surprise! And I am certain Bingley will be equally pleased when I tell him of this dinner party. I should meet with him in a few days.”

He released her hand, helped her enter the carriage, then bowed to them—and smiled.

Uncertain whether she had heard him correctly or rightly understood his words, Elizabeth had no time to return his farewell before the horses began to move.

It was snowing again.

Chapter 4

Elizabeth was not certain whether she had slept an hour the entire night. She could remember falling asleep a few times, but she would waken after only a few minutes. After she recollected, more than once, every minute of the previous evening, the image of Mr. Darcy’s expression right before their departure would not leave her mind.

Did he mean what she believed he did? Would he tell Mr. Bingley about their presence in Town? Could she expect Mr. Bingley to visit them soon? If so, should she tell Jane? But what if Mr. Darcy did not keep his word? Was this possible? Would he mention such an important thing if he did not wish to do it? And what if he told Mr. Bingley, but that gentleman still did not come to visit Jane? What if they all misinterpreted Mr. Bingley’s affection for Jane? Would Jane be able to bear another disappointment? No, indeed. There was nothing to be shared with Jane for the moment.

And Mr. Darcy…was it possible that he changed his mind about Mr. Bingley and Jane? Why would he do that? What if she had misjudged him from the very beginning? What if he was not responsible for Mr. Bingley’s decision to leave Netherfield?”

“No, this will not do,” she said loudly, furious with her own thoughts. She rose from the bed and went to open the window. The cold winter wind assaulted the room instantly while flakes of snow fell on her face. She shivered but remained in the window frame, looking along the empty, white, frozen street. The snow had covered everything in white, and she closed her eyes, allowing herself to be wrapped in happy memories. She had loved winter and snow since she was an infant and used to spend her days skating, playing, or simply walking in the snow, or riding in her father’s small sleigh.

None of her sisters—not even Jane—shared her love for the cold and for snow, and Mrs. Bennet spent every winter complaining that Elizabeth would catch a very bad cold and die from it, and her nerves would never recover after losing a beloved—though wild and disobedient—child.

With a smile frozen on her lips and missing her family, whom she had only left three days ago, she wondered how they spent their Christmas and whether it were snowing at Longbourn; Elizabeth then shut the window and, shivering, hurried to the warmth of her bed.

It was dawn and a deep sleep finally wrapped her.

***

Why he had promised he would talk to Bingley, Darcy could not explain to himself.

Did it take so little for him to change his mind? He believed himself to have been fair and correct in his opinions; he rightly insisted that Bingley should remain in town for the winter. However, he was forced to admit privately that his insistence was increased by his wish of keeping himself away from Hertfordshire—away from Elizabeth Bennet, the same Elizabeth who had been brought by fate into his uncle’s house on Christmas evening.

When they departed and he promised he would speak to Bingley the next day, Elizabeth had been surprised by his words—pleasantly surprised and incredulous, looking at him with her eyes , her lips half parted. And that moment he understood the reason he made the promise: precisely to see her looking at him with wonder. Had he completely lost his reason? What purpose could it serve?

On the subject of lost reason, surely that was the case with his uncle. Darcy could easily understand why and how the earl had been charmed by Elizabeth Bennet as soon as he met her. But to express his admiration for her so publicly and to insist that both his sons should court the Bennet sisters—that was unacceptable. Suppose one of them took his words seriously? He might raise expectations and hopes impossible to fulfil? Surely, he could not be serious about wanting both ladies in his family? The earl had taken his information about the Bennet family and dismissed it instantly. Yet, only one evening in the Bennets’ company—as at the Netherfield ball—would surely change the earl’s intentions immediately.

In any case, such a union was not possible. If Miss Bennet
was
attached to Bingley, she could not possibly accept the courtship of another man—even a viscount—so easily. If she did, that would mean that he—Darcy—had been correct in his judgement all along, and he would have every reason to congratulate himself on saving his friend from such a disastrous relation.

As for Miss Elizabeth, she appeared to enjoy the colonel’s company, and it was obvious that he was smitten with her. Robert was easily taken with any beautiful woman, but he also made no secret of his intention to pursue an advantageous marriage as he had long declared his disbelief in lasting love.

Oh, for heaven’s sake, I am being ridiculous! This is not about my uncle or my cousins! What should I do tomorrow?

Yet, he knew there was only one thing to do.

Just before sleep took hold, he remembered Georgiana’s lively chat on their way home: how pleased she had been to meet the Bennet sisters and how she and Selina planned to call on them the next day. He knew he should be alarmed by the recollection, but he was too tired to think about it.

***

“You must admit that you owe us an explanation, dear Aunt. What happened last evening could not have been a mere coincidence.”

Elizabeth had purposely wakened early to spend time alone with Mrs. Gardiner. The latter smiled.

“What sort of explanation do you wish? On what subject?”

“Hmm… Let me consider… Perhaps on Mr. Darcy’s connection with the earl’s family? Or Mr. and Miss Darcy’s unexpected presence at the dinner where we were also invited? And a few words about why you allowed my severe criticism of Mr. Darcy without even mentioning that you are well connected with his relatives?”

“Not so hasty, my dear. The only blame I take upon myself is that I kept Mr. Darcy’s presence at dinner a secret. I could easily see that both you and Jane were surprised to see him so suddenly. I should not have trifled with your feelings.”

“No, you should not. I imagine you planned this little charade together with Lady Selina. Was the earl part of the scheme, too?”

“No, indeed. And it was not a charade; as Lady Selena informed me, it is a family custom to have dinner together on Christmas evening
”

“I imagine so, but that was no excuse for your secrecy. Indeed, you are culpable—not on my account but for poor Jane.”

“You are right. However, I trust Jane’s time was not entirely unpleasant. She seemed to have formed a friendly acquaintance with everybody, including Miss Darcy. And even Mr. Darcy was more amiable than I would have expected considering your stories about his many faults and his evil character.”

Mrs. Gardiner’s irony did not escape Elizabeth.

“I never believed that Mr. Darcy had an evil character, Aunt! And I never declared he had many faults…only pride, haughtiness, an uncivil attitude, and disdain for everybody around him—oh, yes, and his unfortunate influence over his friend Mr Bingley.”

Mrs. Gardiner laughed. “Not many faults, indeed…”

“However, I truly liked Miss Darcy,” Elizabeth declared seriously. “Making her acquaintance was one of the good things to come from the evening. And speaking of Miss Darcy, I cannot be more certain that there is no attachment of any kind between her and Mr. Bingley. She has a good opinion of him but nothing more. I am convinced that Caroline Bingley tried to deceive Jane—and us—regarding Miss Darcy’s attachment to Mr. Bingley. Hateful woman!”

“In this, I completely agree with you, my dear. And what other good things?”

“What do you mean ‘other good things’?”

Mrs. Gardiner smiled again. “You said Miss Darcy’s presence was
one
of the good things to come from our gathering. What are the other good things?”

“There were many good things, but the most important…Mr. Darcy mentioned to me that he will inform Mr. Bingley of our presence in Town. What do you think of that?”

“Of Mr. Darcy?”

“Aunt, please do not tease me! Do you think he will keep his word? Should we expect Mr. Bingley to call soon?”

“Lizzy, please take a seat and let us talk calmly, child. Neither good nor bad anticipation are desirable regarding Mr. Bingley or Mr. Darcy. I am inclined to believe Mr. Darcy will keep his word, but I am not confident that, in doing so, all the problems suddenly will be solved. Besides, from my knowledge, Mr. Bingley has been out of town for the last few days. That is why Lady Selina and I did not call at his house yesterday,” concluded Mrs. Gardiner to an incredulous and silent Elizabeth.

***