Chapter 37
CHAPTER THIRTY-SEVEN
The morning following the Matlocks’ ball, Bingley called at Darcy House, determined to learn the truth of the previous evening. He had evidently found his sister’s account difficult to credit and was plainly astonished to discover that Darcy had wed.
“You are married?” Bingley repeated, staring at him in undisguised disbelief. “When did this occur? You said nothing of it when I visited Netherfield earlier in the month.”
“Elizabeth and I have been wed above a fortnight,” Darcy replied evenly. “Your visit was brief, and much of our time was necessarily spent addressing the consequences of your sister’s conduct.”
Bingley’s expression darkened.
“She is… not reconciled,” he admitted at last. It was evident he had endured a scene, whether the previous night or that very morning Darcy could not determine.
“I find my sympathy limited,” Darcy returned, more coolly than he was accustomed to speaking to his friend. “Miss Bingley invited humiliation and received it.”
Darcy then informed Bingley that his sister had appropriated an invitation intended for another guest. By what means she had accomplished it was never entirely determined—whether through influence with the printer or by intercepting misplaced correspondence—but Lady Matlock was resolved that Miss Bingley should never recover in society after such audacity.
Between that impropriety and her earlier mortification at the theatre, Miss Bingley would soon find herself decidedly unwelcome in London society.
Doors that had once opened only grudgingly would now be firmly closed.
Darcy could no longer offer excuses for her conduct.
The combined embarrassment of the affair, together with the loss of the year’s rent already paid upon his sister’s lease, persuaded Bingley to accept—though not without reluctance—the partial reimbursement Darcy offered for Netherfield, less what was owed the estate for the items Miss Bingley had broken during her brief sojourn at the manor.
Darcy informed him only that circumstances at Netherfield had altered upon his own marriage and that the estate could no longer continue under its former arrangement.
Although Darcy had been less than pleased by how frequently his aunt insisted upon their attendance at social engagements in the months following their marriage, he could not deny the satisfaction of having Mrs Darcy at his side.
It was true that they were occasionally separated, most often at the insistence of some well-meaning relation, yet they contrived to spend a considerable portion of their time together.
In late April, they departed for Pemberley, bringing Georgiana with them.
For several months she had divided her time between Matlock House and Darcy House, endeavouring to afford the newly married couple some privacy while also enjoying the companionship of Elizabeth, now both her friend and her sister.
They intended to rest for several days at Netherfield along the way, that Darcy might assure himself that all was proceeding as it ought.
Not long after the wedding, arrangements had been set in motion for Richard to assume possession of the estate, a plan made possible in part by his decision to sell his commission.
The necessary papers were prepared in proper form, the terms framed with deliberate generosity towards him, and once the signatures were affixed, Netherfield passed into his care without difficulty.
Richard assumed possession shortly thereafter and did so without display.
The Hursts were consulted and chose to remain for a short period, an arrangement agreeable to all.
Their continued presence proved particularly convenient, as it afforded Richard frequent opportunities to advance his attentions to Jane Bennet without the necessity of calling perpetually at Longbourn, where the atmosphere was not always conducive to private conversation.
In his subsequent letters—otherwise chiefly occupied with the management of Netherfield—Richard remarked that Mrs Hurst had begun inviting Jane and Mary Bennet with marked regularity, often persuading them to remain for the greater part of the afternoon.
The rest of the Bennet family were included far less frequently.
From these accounts, Darcy gathered that an understanding between his cousin and Elizabeth’s was not far distant.
Though letters passed regularly between Darcy and Richard, and between Elizabeth and at least two of her cousins, some matters could not be fully apprehended at a distance.
Foremost among these was Bingley’s unexpected return with his sister to Netherfield in late February.
Soon after the Darcys’ arrival en route to Pemberley, Richard explained that Bingley had come believing only that his sister and brother-in-law were in residence, unaware that Richard had assumed possession of the estate and that the Hursts remained merely as guests.
His appearance, Richard continued, most unfortunately coincided with a visit from the Bennet ladies.
Mrs Bennet, wholly ignorant of the altered circumstances and of Richard’s position as master, renewed her former efforts at once. Jane was seated beside Bingley almost immediately, while Mrs Bennet recalled with satisfaction the attentions he had shown her eldest daughter the previous autumn.
Miss Bingley, Richard reported, sat in visible agitation, unable to disparage the Bennets without inviting renewed mention of her own recent humiliation. For several uncomfortable minutes, nearly everyone present—save Mrs Bennet and her two youngest daughters—was keenly aware of the situation.
At length, Richard intervened.
“I regret that your arrival finds us somewhat unprepared,” he said evenly. “Netherfield has undergone certain changes of late. Had we known you intended to call, we might have made more suitable arrangements. May I enquire how long you intend to remain in the neighbourhood?”
The question, Richard assured Darcy, was delivered with perfect composure. Its implication, however, was unmistakable.
Mrs Bennet appeared bewildered; Bingley was disconcerted, and Miss Bingley’s agitation deepened.
“Jane, at least, was not taken unaware,” Richard added afterward when he recounted these events to his cousin. “She had been informed of the alteration some weeks ago and bore herself with admirable steadiness.”
Darcy listened without interruption, even as one particular detail had not escaped him.
“You speak of Miss Bennet with marked familiarity,” he observed at last, one brow lifting slightly. “Have matters advanced so far?”
Richard’s expression shifted at once, amusement settling into something more composed.
“I wished to inform you in person,” he said. “Jane has done me the honour of accepting my addresses.”
Darcy studied him for a moment before allowing himself the faintest smile. “You have my congratulations. When was this settled?”
“Only a few days ago,” Richard replied, a trace of colour rising despite his evident satisfaction. “We are to be married at the end of June. Her mother was resolute that it could not be sooner.”
“Elizabeth and I will be unlikely to return at that time.”
Richard nodded. “I do understand, cousin. It is a long journey, and the middle of summer is not the best time to travel. I was wondering whether we might visit you instead on our wedding trip. It will not be the same as having you here, but it will allow me to show Jane your home and to spend some time with Georgiana. We may even bring Mary with us if her father allows it. I know that she and Georgiana became great friends last autumn and have exchanged letters often.”
Darcy nodded his agreement, but before he could say more, Richard added one last piece of news.
“Your new grandfather sent me a letter that I received only yesterday. He and Father apparently plotted, and I am to be knighted sometime in the next year at a ceremony with the Prince Regent. Apparently, when I hauled Granfield out of the way of that musket ball, it was sufficient to merit the notice of those who choose such honours—and, it seems, their approval as well.”
With a grin, Darcy agreed that “it could not have happened to a better man,” expression his pleasure that he had managed, once again, to decline any such honours for himself.
He had persuaded the earls not to make a similiar request for him, convincing them that a man as blunt as he would never succeed in politics.
They were rather forced to agree with him when he declared, with perfect composure, that he would neither flatter a fool nor support a measure he believed unjust merely to secure favour—and that, in consequence, he should likely offend half the House within a fortnight.
With that, the conversation returned to more practical matters, but Darcy discussed the matter with Elizabeth later.
She had already known of the engagement, since Jane and Mary had visited Netherfield earlier that afternoon, at Mrs Hurst’s invitation.
At first, Mrs Hurst had worried that Elizabeth would not wish for them to have visitors on their first day in residence, but Elizabeth reassured her that she was most anxious to meet her cousins again.
“Oh, I wish they could marry sooner so we could attend, but I know we must go home to Pemberley. I so look forward to seeing it. But, certainly, we will invite Richard and Jane to come to us for their wedding trip, and Mary must come as well. She and Georgiana got along so well, and it would benefit both of them.”
Darcy smiled at her enthusiasm for their home and greatly anticipated taking Elizabeth there. He would have told her so, had she not interrupted him.
“Oh, and there was a letter here for me from Grandpapa.”
The animation in her countenance shifted at once. He knew her expressions too well to mistake this for playful invention. Her astonishment was genuine and not distressing; it roused in him more curiosity than concern.