Page 107 of Colour My World
“Very good. It pleases me that you both continue to pursue a broad education.” Mrs Ecclestone took a sip of tea.
Kitty looked relieved. Lydia sat perfectly still. Both Darcy and Bingley looked faintly chagrined. Bennet noted it with satisfaction. The men had just been corrected. Mrs Bennet gave Jane a meaningful glance.
Bennet took that as his cue. He set down his glass, folded his hands, and looked directly at Bingley. “Tell me, Mr Bingley, do you find Meryton well-supplied?”
Bingley blinked. “I beg your pardon?”
“Supplied,” Bennet repeated. “With amusements, of course.”
Bingley looked like a hare flushed from cover.
Jane, to her credit, merely sipped her tea, serene and unassuming.
Bingley fumbled. “Er—yes?”
“Ah,” Bennet said. “Then I suppose you will be eager to return to London.”
“I—well—”
Mrs Ecclestone raised an eyebrow. Mrs Bennet whispered furiously. Jane raised her cup once more, composed. Elizabeth glanced at Darcy. Darcy looked away. Bennet, delighted beyond words, sipped his tea.
“I”—Bingley cleared his throat— “I find I rather like the country.”
Jane smiled into her teacup.
Mrs Ecclestone exhaled. “Well. At last, some honesty.”
Bingley gave the distinct impression of a man manoeuvred into a trap and unable to object to the craftsmanship.
Bennet reclined. “Well, Mr Bingley, I suppose you must decide soon whether you prefer London or the country. We should all be eager to know.”
Mrs Ecclestone nodded once, and Bingley looked as though he would rather face a battalion.
Jane set down her cup. “Would you care for another, Mr Bingley?”
Bingley met her gaze. “I—yes,” he said, with all the gravity of a man accepting his fate.
Elizabeth looked at Darcy. Darcy studied the pattern on his plate. Bennet bit back a laugh. Mrs Ecclestone took another sip of tea. Bennet, thoroughly satisfied, sat back.
Yes. He enjoyed comedies immensely.
Chapter 39
Mrs Ecclestone had spoken, and so it must be. No sooner had the gentlemen made their farewells than she had directed them to escort the eldest Miss Bennets on a walk. There was no appeal, no negotiation, merely a deft flick of her fan and an imperious nod that sent Mr Bingley offering his arm to Elizabeth and Mr Darcy to Jane.
Elizabeth blinked.Mr Bingley?
She had barely processed the pairing before he was at her side, beaming as if he had won a prize in the village fair.
“This is delightful.” Mr Bingley inhaled the garden air. “I had wondered how best to improve the morning, and here we are!”
Elizabeth glanced back. Mrs Ecclestone had paired Mr Darcy with Jane.
Jane.And Mr Darcy. Mr Darcy, who had spent weeks staring at her as though she were an enigma he could not solve, walked beside her sister conversing.Speaking!
The sight unsettled her in a way she could not name.
“She has rather taken command of the house,” Bingley said, nodding towards Mrs Ecclestone, who stood watching their departure with a small smile of approval.
