Page 56 of Knowing Mr. Darcy
In the distance, the sound of Lady Catherine’s voice came through the air, but Elizabeth could not make out what she was saying.
Mr. Darcy turned his head. He turned back. “This is my cousin, Colonel Richard Fitzwilliam and my sister Miss Darcy.” He gestured blindly behind himself. “It’s quite good to see your sister again.” He nodded at Jane. “Miss Bennet.”
“Mr. Darcy, so good to see you,” said Jane.
“Yes,” said Mr. Darcy.
Another long silence.
“Well,” said Mr. Darcy, clearing his throat. “Good morning.”
“Good morning,” echoed Elizabeth.
Another silence.
And then Mr. Darcy turned and walked back to the colonel and his sister. They all walked up the stairs where they engaged in conversation with Lady Catherine.
“Elizabeth,” whispered Charlotte, “you did not tell me that Mr. Darcy is in love with you.”
“Is that how men behave when they are in love?” Elizabeth whispered back.
All three of the women burst into giggles.
It must have been loud.
Everyone on the steps of Rosings turned to look at them.
“Oh,” said Elizabeth, mortified, “let us go. Make haste. We shall all simply walk back to the parsonage.”
“All right,” agreed Charlotte, and they turned to walk back.
But Lady Catherine’s voice carried behind them, shrill and loud, very understandable this time. “Miss Bennet, if you are come to play the piano-forte, you are most welcome!”
So, they felt as if they must go in after all that.
They approached and Lady Catherine praised Jane for her interest and commitment, and Mr. Darcy was looking at Elizabeth again, and so was the colonel, and Miss Darcy was, too, curiously, as if she could not quite understand what it was about Elizabeth, and Elizabeth agreed with her.
Finally, they were able to excuse themselves to go to the room with the piano.
They didn’t get much playing done, for they were all breathless from laughing too hard. Had Mr. Darcyfollowedher there?Washe in love with her? Why did he stare in that fashion of his? If he were in love with her, why did he look as if itinconveniencedhim so badly?
Eventually, they did get around to practicing some scales with Jane, who—it turned out—knew more of the basics than they might have suspected, having watched others play. She was quite aware of the names of the notes and their position on the keyboard, so it was only the matter of associating them with the notations on the musical staff, which simply took practice.
Elizabeth thought her sister would be playing better than any of them in no time.
MR. DARCY’S INTENTIONhad not been to bring his sister along to Rosings, for he and his cousin had planned a trip here before all of this had come to pass. It would have been later in March, and it would not have included Georgiana.
However, it now seemed that his sister was very likely in danger all the time, from the likes of Caroline Bingley. He perhaps couldn’t protect her here from wagging tongues, but it felt safer to have her close.
What Caroline was up to these days, he did not know. He was not in contact with Bingley much at all anymore and he therefore didn’t associate with Caroline either. He had run into Mr. Hurst at a dinner party a few weeks ago, but Hurst had only been interested in the whist tables and said that he did his best to ignore everything that was happening with his wife’s family. That way, he said, lay madness.
Darcy could not help but agree.
Madness, indeed.
Richard, his cousin, had come straightaway when Darcy had indicated there was danger for Georgiana. He had a long leave, some months, and he was determined to have settled the matter before he left. All of his ideas for settling the matter, however, seemed to begin and end in violence.
He discussed threatening Caroline Bingley, and Mr. Darcy told him that was out of the question.
