CHAPTER SIXTY
Whilst he rode Quinton to Longbourn the next morning, he suddenly remembered that he had accepted a request to dine with the Robinsons that evening.
As soon as it was recalled to his mind, he regretted accepting the invitation, thinking that if all went well, he might certainly be invited to dine at Longbourn.
He was not dismayed, however, and even did his best to suppress any doubt that he might, after all, be rejected in his proposal.
The visit was a most pleasant one, but regrettably, he did not find himself alone with Jane at any time during the hour.
In one sense he was relieved, as his nerves had him fully in their grip.
However, on riding home he found himself melancholy that his hopes were still so unanswered and his love, as yet, unrequited.
Having been invited once more the following day and having no engagements whatsoever, he accepted gladly and passed the rest of the afternoon attending to business with Mr.
Wilshere before dining with the Robinsons that evening.
When he arrived at Longbourn the following morning then, he could hardly hold in his anticipation.
But alas, much time passed without an opportunity to speak with Miss Bennet alone.
After tea, however, Mr. Bennet retired to his library and Mary upstairs, and in a most unusual fashion Mrs. Bennet saw each of the remaining daughters—save Jane, of course—exit the room.
Bingley sat across from Jane, alone at last, but felt unable to speak.
Her beauty was astonishing, her smile like the dawn of day itself. All he could think of was confessing his love, but he felt duty bound to first confess his most furtive and unpalatable deeds.
“Miss Bennet,”
he began with a shy smile, which she returned in his direction. “May I share something rather personal with you?”
“If you wish to, Mr. Bingley,”
she sweetly answered.
“I would like to ask a question of you. But before I make a mull of everything, I pray that you make no reply until tomorrow.”
She suddenly looked like she might be sick. He grimaced, then quickly smiled in a shoddy attempt to reassure her. “I would like to describe a man—his character, as well as his deeds—and then ask if… if it were possible that you could ever love such a man.”
Jane simply nodded, holding her tightly clasped hands across her stomach.
“There is a man who is good-natured, honest, and values innocence, purity, and life itself. Inadvertently, this man stumbled into a world of darkness and evil not his own, but a world of other men—wealthy and highly influential men. Their deeds were gruesome, vile, and calculated. There was no question as to their guilt and their wanton disregard for anything save their own pleasure, but there was also no question of bringing them before the courts due to the enormous influence wielded by these same men. So then… this man , felt duty and honour bound to carry out justice on behalf of God and those victims who suffered at their hands so cruelly. One by one, this man meted out that justice in a manner which would shock and terrorize the remaining evildoers, until at last, he had succeeded in smiting their plague from the earth.”
The look on her face might have succeeded in smiting him from the room—she was aghast, overwhelmed, and even mortified, but not afraid.
“Before I ask my question and take my leave, I would have you be assured that this man has succeeded in his duty and has laid it aside to live in peace the rest of his life. I would also have you know that this man… thinks very highly of you, and always has . There was not a single moment, as he carried out his work, that he did not keep you in his heart. In fact, he succeeded in it only because he could not bear the thought of your innocence, your beauty, and your virtue existing side by side with such wickedness. He even allowed the possibility of losing you in order to help establish a world in which the two of you could exist in serenity, happiness, and love together. That has been his fervent and unwavering wish since nearly the moment he first laid eyes upon you.”
She was biting her top lip, her furrowed brow wise and strong. “Mr. Bingley…”
she whispered.
“I do not expect nor require a response until tomorrow, for it would not be honourable if you were not given time to make a reasoned and thoughtful reply. If you will allow me, then, I shall ask my question: knowing in full what this man is and what he has done, could you love such a man? ”
Jane looked up from the floor and met his gaze. Her eyes were moist and her breathing heavy. Just then, Elizabeth entered the room once more, and though she paid them hardly any attention, it was too obvious to escape her notice that something rather important had taken place.
The next few moments were spent in peculiar silence—Bingley and Jane having come to something of an impasse after such a startling declaration, and Elizabeth too well-mannered to inquire. Finally, after what seemed to him to be a torturous epoch, Jane smiled warmly, looking him directly in the eyes, and asked: “Mr. Bingley, would you care for more tea?”
A swell of affectivity nearly took him entirely off guard as he perceived in the timbre of her voice and the tenderness in her gaze that he had already had his answer. “I would, I thank you,”
he responded, a sudden moisture rising behind his eyes. He blinked quickly and followed her with his eyes as she rose—graceful, elegant, and kind. From the corner of his gaze, he caught Miss Elizabeth peering at him over her book. He addressed her with an awkward nod; her raised eyebrows betraying the smile she endeavoured to veil.
Once more it would seem that we have arrived at a junction where little can be added to what has already been told long before this particular manuscript came to light, save that Miss Bennet wholeheartedly accepted the good Mr. Bingley’s proposal to marriage the next day. She remarked that while she had always been inclined to admire him, knowing his character even more fully served only to enhance her affection.
It so happens that Miss Elizabeth had learned from her aunt, Mrs. Gardiner, of the role Mr. Darcy played in arranging the marriage of Lydia to Mr. Wickham.
Since Darcy had laid out such a large sum and had shown the strength of his character through such lavish forgiveness of Mr. Wickham, it was Bingley’s firm resolve to keep his own role in the matter concealed.
It was only after Darcy and Elizabeth had been married some months that her sister Jane, in fact, informed her of Mr. Bingley’s role in saving the life of their youngest sister.
From that point, Elizabeth relinquished her grudge against Mr. Wickham, though Lydia’s manners and behaviour continued to pique her for years to come. But alas, we have got ahead of ourselves.
One more matter of note, before we may properly proceed:
when Maitland arrived in Meryton, he bore with him the sincerest thanks on behalf of the Yates family. Additionally, the young man made a request, rather timidly, of Mr. Bingley—that he be allowed to study the law and establish a career within its bounds.
Bingley was surprised by the request but was sufficiently impressed by him—not to mention indebted to him with his very life—that he ordered Wilshere to put the plan in motion immediately.
As it happened, Mr. Maitland had one final request: that he might take his schooling within comfortable distance of Hertfordshire.