Page 73 of New World Tea Company
Genuinely curious, Charlotte asked, “Do Lady Catherine and Mr Darcy often argue, Mr Collins?”
The parson said, “Mr Darcy is a gentleman of the best temperament and education, but he does not fulfil Lady Catherine’s wishes regarding her rents, servants, and expenses.”
Mimicking the parson, Elizabeth sighed and said, “It is almost as if Lady Catherine thought she understood investmentsand budgets, Mr Collins. As you said earlier, ladies cannot understand such things. Mr Darcy must deal with her excessive requests.”
The young woman watched the parson closely before she added, “Perhaps you should advise her that she cannot hope to understand things such as money.”
With a conflicted look, Mr Collins directed his wife and cousin to retire for the evening. The maid was the only person in the parsonage who fell asleep quickly that evening.
~~~
At the table early the following morning, with sufficient toast and tea to break their fast, Elizabeth decided to lay the framework for the visit they hoped would occur later in the day. With the parson at the table, she asked, “Charlotte, do you suppose Mr Darcy will call here at the parsonage?”
Mr Collins dismissed the idea, and rather than allowing his wife to reply, he asked, “Cousin, why would the illustrious nephew of her Ladyship call on my wife? He has no connection with Mrs Collins.”
“But sir, is he not a gentleman of the best temperament and education?”
Smiling and nodding, Mr Collins replied, “He is, as I told you last night.”
“Did he not dine with Sir William and Lady Lucas last autumn in Meryton? I believe Charlotte is known to him socially.”
Mr Collins attempted to summon an argument and could only say, “But Mr Darcy is Lady Catherine’s nephew.”
“Mr Collins, if Mr Darcy were to call at the parsonage, I have fresh tea leaves, and I shall make the biscuits he seemed to prefer to Hertfordshire. I shall greet him appropriately, praisemy husband’s sermons and remark on the loveliness of the spring in Kent.”
After silent reflection, the parson instructed his wife, “But do not be alone with Mr Darcy, Mrs Collins.”
“Alone, sir? I cannot imagine a situation where I would be alone with the gentleman.”
“Nonetheless, he is a man who might take advantage of you.”
“Mr Collins! Mr Darcy would never do something inappropriate?” Charlotte cried. “What would Lady Catherine say if he were to do such a thing?”
Elizabeth was shocked that Mr Collins thought Mr Darcy might force himself upon any woman. Remembering stories whispered among the wives in Meryton; she understood that such things did occur but, to her knowledge, not among her acquaintances.
~~~
As he walked away from the parsonage and toward Rosings Park that morning, the parson had several dark thoughts on his mind. He would never dare tell Lady Catherine that because she was a woman, she could not understand money matters.
~~~
Charlotte was affected by her husband’s warning but not in the way he must have hoped. After four months of marriage to William Collins and growing frustrated with his reluctance to come to her bed, she wondered how to find herself with child.
‘Are all men disposed to debauchery? With Mr Collins, his visits to my bed are only five minutes or less. I must impose myself upon my husband. There is reason to hurry–I shall soon be thirty years old, and childbirth will be more difficult.’Charlotte stared at her reflection in a window and recognized that she would pray for guidance.
And she wondered,‘What would Eliza think? My mother? Mrs Bennet? Perhaps Mrs Bennet would understand better than anyone else.’
Hopeful to avoid uncomfortable conversations, Elizabeth helped Charlotte bake the shortbreads in the kitchen that morning. The two women made certain the parlour was spotless. While they cleaned the kitchen, the younger woman asked, “Do you think Mr Collins will return early?”
“Return early?” Charlotte inquired. “Why?”
“To be here if Mr Darcy calls,” Elizabeth explained as she sat at the kitchen table.
“No,” Charlotte replied, dismissing the notion. “Once Mr Collins enters Rosings Park each morning, he devotes his attention to Lady Catherine and does not think of the souls he is charged to shepherd, the parsonage, or me until he returns this evening. He will speak of Mr Darcy with Lady Catherine but not consider being here this afternoon.”
Then Charlotte sat down, placed her hands on the table between them, and asked, “Do you really believe Mr Darcy will call?”
Sitting in a chair opposite her friend, Elizabeth answered, “Yes, Charlotte. He said he would call. And if something occurred that kept him away today, he will come tomorrow.”
