Page 64 of Mr. Darcy's Runaway Bride
“Mama, I was just on my way to—”
“This cannot wait,” Mrs Bennet insisted, drawing Elizabeth into the alcove. “I have been observing your Mr Darcy this evening, and I must say, he does not appear as attentive as a new husband ought to be. Is all well between you?”
“Perfectly well,” Elizabeth replied, though the words tasted false upon her tongue. “Mr Darcy is merely reserved in company, as you know.”
Mrs Bennet sniffed, clearly unconvinced. “Well, it signifies little, I suppose, so long as he maintains you in the style to which you have become accustomed at Pemberley. Speaking of which, I wished to discuss a matter of some delicacy.”
Elizabeth felt a prickle of unease at her mother’s tone. “What matter?”
“It concerns your sister Jane,” Mrs Bennet said, lowering her voice to a stage whisper that could likely be heard three feet away. “Mr Bingley appears most attentive, does he not? I have every expectation that he will make an offer before your visit concludes.”
“I would not presume to anticipate Mr Bingley’s intentions,” Elizabeth cautioned.
“Nonsense! A mother knows these things. And while Mr Bingley’s four or five thousand a year would be a most welcome connection for our family, it cannot compare to your Mr Darcy’s ten thousand. Jane’s marriage alone will not secure our future when your father is gone.”
Elizabeth felt a flicker of alarm. “Mama, surely this is not the moment—”
“When else am I to speak with you?” Mrs Bennet demanded. “You return to Pemberley soon, and then who knows when we shall see you again? No, Lizzy, you must listen. Your Mr Darcy suggested some loan officer might assist with our financial difficulties, but such a notion is absurd when hisown resources could resolve the matter with barely a thought. Besides, a loan officer will not help rid us from that wretched Franklin who breathes down out necks. It is quite stingy of him, I must say.”
“Mr Darcy has been nothing but generous,” Elizabeth protested, mortification flooding her cheeks with colour. “And I beg you would not speak of such matters here, where we might be overheard.”
“But we are quite private,” Mrs Bennet insisted, gesturing to the palm that concealed them from the main ballroom. “And this is a matter of family survival. We cannot rely upon Mr Bingley alone, particularly as he has not yet proposed to Jane. Your Mr Darcy must be made to understand his duty to his wife’s family.”
“He has no such duty,” Elizabeth said. “And I will not importune him for money.”
“How can you be so selfish?” Mrs Bennet’s voice rose. “After all we have done for you, to see you now refuse to assist your own mother and sisters when a word from you could secure our comfort!”
Elizabeth closed her eyes briefly, struggling to maintain her composure. “Mama, I have not refused to assist you. I have refused to treat my marriage as a transaction. There is a distinction.”
“A fine distinction when we are all thrown to the hedgerows upon your father’s death!” Mrs Bennet retorted.
“That will not happen,” Elizabeth said. “Uncle Gardiner and Uncle Phillips have already extended loans to stabiliseLongbourn’s finances. There is no immediate danger. Besides, Mr Franklin may never throw us out, and if he does, we will find a way then. Mr Darcy and Mr Bingley would certainly help us in that situation. They would provide.”
“Oh, would they?” Mrs Bennet scoffed. “And why would they not do so now? Why would Mr Darcy not use his influence now? As for your uncles, what are a few hundred pounds from them compared to what Mr Darcy might provide? It is your duty as a daughter to secure your family’s welfare now that you have the means to do so. Instead of tending to us, you have your head in the clouds with this foolish scribbling of yours.”
“It is not foolish scribbling. I am meeting with a publisher. I told you, that is why Mr Darcy and I are here,” she replied, heat rising in her.
“Ah, so he will assist you with that but not with keeping your family from the poorhouse. So he has some use, at least to you.”
Her mother’s voice had risen to a level that might well carry beyond their alcove. “I will discuss this no further, Mama. Please excuse me.”
She stepped around her mother, relief flooding her as she escaped the alcove. Her cheeks burned with mortification at the thought that someone might have overheard such vulgar considerations.
Chapter 23
Darcy
Darcy stood rigid with shock, having heard every word of the exchange.
He had been seeking a moment’s respite from the press of the ballroom when the voices of Mrs Bennet and Elizabeth reached him. Propriety demanded he make his presence known or remove himself, but the utterance of his name had frozen him in place.
What he had heard confirmed his worst suspicions—that the Bennet family viewed him primarily as a source of financial salvation. More disturbing still was the revelation that this was not the first time this conversation had taken place. It was clear Mrs Bennet had pressed her daughter more than once.
The wound inflicted by Elizabeth’s concealment of her connection to Wickham, barely beginning to heal, now throbbed anew with the realisation he was no more than a walking purse to her family who, if Mrs Bennet was any indication, had not yet understood that their own actions had caused Elizabeth to flee. And what sort of person was she to keep the truth from him?
It was true, he would have been disappointed had she told him she once held Wickham in high regard, but he would have understood. That alone would not have altered his good opinion of her. But the combination of keeping this knowledge from him, and for weeks at a time, along with now seeing her family for what they were gave him pause. Elizabeth had a chance thento clarify. In fact, she had had many chances. And she’d taken none.
Her father had been willing to all but auction her off for good financial terms and connections, her mother was thoroughly motivated by money alone, and while Elizabeth had appeared the very picture of kindness and honesty that had turned out to be false.
