Page 44 of Compromise & Consequence
“No wonder he is all sixes and sevens when it comes to her. Truly, he must be quite besotted.”
“Yes, he must be in love, which explains why the marriage settlement was so generous,” came the sarcastic reply fromElizabeth’s uncle.
“Mr. Bennet, if you knew how often Wickham has tried to hurt him by any means, you would understand the sense of betrayal he felt when he imagined your niece acting as Wickham’s accomplice. It would have cut him deeply.”
“I suppose I will have to take your word for it because we have not seen any evidence of affection or even good manners when it comes to that gentleman – and I use the word loosely about him.”
“Maybe, in your next letter to your niece, you could begin to hint at his goodness. It is there, beneath layers of shyness and awkward behavior.”
“I would love nothing better than to correspond with my niece, but your cousin has forbidden her from contactingher family. It was part of his outrageous demands, along with her not taking all of her belongings with her when she left for Pemberley.”
It was only because he was used to controlling his emotions that Richard didn’t show a physical response of disgust at Mr. Bennet’s words. What had Darcy been thinking?
“First, sir, let me get this straight in my mind. You are forbidden to write to your niece, nor can she write to you?”
“Yes, she may not have direct contact withher family,” he stated again.
Richard noted both times Bennet emphasized the phrase ‘her family’ and held back a smile. Even he could see a way to circumvent that order and stay within the ridiculous parameters Darcy had set down.
“I see, and you believe your niece is currently at Pemberley?”
“That is where Darcy said he would take her after the wedding,” Bennet answered with a firm voice, but his bodyshifted and Richard knew immediately he was not being truthful. How interesting.
“I am happy to advise you she is in London at Darcy House.”
“So close,” Bennet almost breathed out on a sigh and his lips quivered in a smile.
Without a shadow of a doubt, Richard knew Mr. Bennet was very aware of where his niece was. It seemed Mrs. Darcy had already successfully navigated around one of Darcy’s ludicrous roadblocks. The more he learned about the family, the more he liked them. By this time, Miss Bennet had come down for breakfast and joined the gentlemen at the table.
“Good morning, Miss Bennet,” Richard said after he’d stood to greet her.
“Good morning, Colonel, Papa.”
She sat to the left of her father, directly across from Richard. He noticed that her cheeks were tinged a lovely pink, but she never raised her eyes to his, instead, she concentrated on buttering a toasted slice of bread.
“Does your family ever come to town, Mr. Bennet?” Richard asked, hoping Bennet would say yes and he could then finagle an invitation to visit them.
“I hate town,” – his hopes sank faster than a child’s paper boat – “however, Jane will be traveling to town after Christmas with her aunt and uncle.”
“Would this be relatives from your wife’s family?”
“Yes, as a matter of fact, they are.”
“And while Miss Bennet is visitingherfamily, would you mind if I called on them and brought my newest cousin with me?”
“I would approve, except Elizabeth can have no contact withmy daughter.”
“Yes, that is a bit of a conundrum.” Richard turned his attention to Jane. “Miss Bennet, if Mrs. Darcy attended with me, could I offer to walk out with you while she visits?”
During this time, Jane had watched both men with pleasure and then blushed a deeper shade of pink when the colonel asked if he could visit with her specifically.
“I… I would be delighted, Colonel.”
She looked down at her plate and dropped some preserves on her toast.
“Excellent.”
Richard turned his attention to Mr. Bennet who looked amused and disgruntled that he had practically asked to court his daughter in front of him.
