Page 38 of The Cherry Trees of Rosings
They stared at each other.
“I was–”
“Did you–”
They spoke at the same time.
Both blushed furiously once more.
“You first, Miss Bennet,” he said.
“Oh… no, it is not of…” Elizabeth started, before trailing off.She gazed at Mr. Darcy.
At his dark eyes. The proud, aristocratic nose. The familiar curl of hair on one side of his forehead. The shape of his chin. Her heart squeezed.
She stood frozen. Unable to look away.
She had never felt this way before.
…and soon it would not matter.
“It is of no import…” Elizabeth said at last. Her voice was just a touch above a whisper—strained with the effort to not let her sorrow seep in.
She would never see him again.
Elizabeth knew she had not succeeded when Mr. Darcy’s eyes widened. He took a step towards her. And then he stopped. He looked unsure of what to do with his hands.
Bitterness washed across his features. He dropped his gaze, fixing it on the floor between them.
It had never felt more like a chasm to Elizabeth.
“I should… let you refresh yourself,” he said.
“No,” she said, at once.
Mr. Darcy looked up in surprise.
Elizabeth shrugged. A weak smile appeared on her face, even as she clutched at her skirts. She walked to the writing desk, stepping around him.
“I think we should finish your letter to Miss Darcy.”
Chapter 26:
Charlotte’s Way
Fate does not always unfold infinitesimally.
Sometimes, it unfolds all at once.
When Charlotte knocked on Elizabeth’s door later that same night, the latter was in the middle of writing Miss Darcy’s letter, with Mr. Darcy seated near her in his usual chair.
“Eliza, I have news!” Charlotte said as she hurried in and closed the door behind her. She was still dressed in the gown she had worn to Rosings.
“News?” Elizabeth asked, glancing discreetly at Mr. Darcy.
“Yes,” Charlotte said, and then paused. Her eyes swept over Elizabeth’s clothes. “You are not in your nightclothes. That is good! I was worried you might be.”
“Yes, well…” Elizabeth cleared her throat. “Why?”
